After Effects
by Vamptress RayZor
Summary: Unfinished and never will be finished... Sorry, all! The after effects of Avalanche's efforts to save the planet. Better Sumary inside. Rated for language.
1. Chapter One: Miss Yuffie

~~~~~~IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER HERE!~~~~~~  
Summary: This is mostly about all of AVALANCHE, though I do tend to wonder off in a different direction every now and then. Mostly about Yuffie and her life. This is very dramatic, but there is some comic relief. Read and review!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
After Effects  
By: Yuffie Kisaragi  
  
Chapter One: Miss Yuffie  
"Damn times two!" -Yuffie Kisaragi  
  
Cloud woke up with a feeling of dread. Where was he? He was almost too afraid to open his eyes, so he left them shut.  
Wake up!  
He knew that they'd defeated someone, but who was it? Why?  
Cloud!?!  
A meteor? Sephiroth? Why did that come back?  
Cloud!?!  
That voice! He recognized it from somewhere, but where?  
Cloud, please wake up! I-I love you, Cloud.  
Tifa Lockheart? Was that Tifa's voice? He heard crying. Was Tifa crying, why? Please, please wake up!  
He opened his eyes. The feeling of dread left him, but where exactly was he? He tried to sit up, but straps held him down.  
No, he thought. Where's Tifa?  
He glanced around the room. It was a hospital room, and in the corner was a girl crying.  
"Tifa?" His voice was hoarse, making it sound like he was whispering, and his throat hurt terribly.  
The girl looked over at Cloud. "Cloud? You're awake!" She hit a button, then hurried over to Cloud.  
"Where am I?" His throat hurt worse with every word.  
"You're in the hospital." A nurse and doctor hurried into the room, interrupting Cloud and Tifa.  
"Amazing," the doctor remarked.  
"I'm sorry, but what's amazing?" Cloud asked hoarsely.  
The doctor looked startled. "You don't remember about the Highwind accident?" Cloud shook his head. "Let me undo these straps, then I will allow Miss Lockheart to explain." The nurse unstrapped Cloud from the bed and disconnected his IV.  
Tifa moved forward and shook the doctor's and the nurse's hands and thanked them, then they left, leaving Tifa and Cloud alone in the hospital room.  
"So, what happened?"  
Tifa's brown eyes shone with love and worry.  
"After our final battle with Sephiroth, we went back to Midgar and got many of the people from the slums out. We took them away from Midgar when Holy struck. Midgar's totally destroyed. You and Cid dropped everyone off at Kalm, then headed back to Rocket Town. Something happened, neither of you know what, but the Highwind crashed."  
"Where's Cid?" Cloud asked, his throat still hurt terribly, but he really didn't care at the moment. He had to make sure that his friend was okay.  
"He's fine. Escaped with only a few scratches. You've been in a coma for three weeks, though."  
Cloud sat up and tried to fight off nausea.  
"Lay down," Tifa commanded softly, but firmly.  
Cloud looked up at Tifa and gave her a reassuring smile.  
"I'm fine. Lemme get started on the rehabilitation right away. 'Till then, you can fill me in on what's happened these last few weeks."  
"Well," Tifa started. How could she summarize all that happened in the past three weeks? "A new town has started up, two actually. Somaliland, which is between Chocobo Bill's ranch and Kalm. Then, Glasgow, which is to the east of the ruins of Midgar, it's a harbor town."  
"How's everyone? Where'd they all go?"  
Tifa smiled, of course he'd want to find out about all of their friends.  
"Well, Barret and Marlene went back to Corel to help them rebuild. Red went home to Cosmo Canyon to become the Canyon's Protector. Cid went back to Rocket Town and is still living with Shera, treating her better than he used to, but not much. Together, they're rebuilding his rocket, with help from the crew, of course. Yuffie went back to Wutai, but recently disappeared. We gave her all our materia as we'd promised." Cloud chuckled and shook his head. "Reeve and Cait Sith are trying to help build Somaliland and Glasgow. Vincent went to Lucrecia's Falls, but Lucrecia had died. He set up a small funeral, then disappeared after it was finished. The Turks," Cloud frowned at the name and Tifa held in a laugh. "The Turks are mercenaries for hire...and Reeve has hired them to help protect the Black Materia and Sephiroth's Mesamune."  
Cloud looked drowsy, so Tifa urged him to go back to sleep and get some rest. He finally drifted off to sleep and Tifa called everyone on the PHS to let them know that Cloud woke up.  
  
"Reno, why can't you just quit being such a pervert and c'mere!?!" A blonde woman practically screamed at the red head guy, both wearing suits. Reno, who had been staring at a pretty brunet waitress, suddenly looked over at his comrades, Elena and Rude.  
"Huh?"  
Elena let out a sound that sounded suspiciously like a growl and Rude shook his head.  
"Your turn to pay, Reno." Rude stated casually. Reno suddenly looked panicked.  
"Oh, uh, could someone lend me some gil?" He caught Elena's glare. "Jeesh, I'll pay, I'll pay!" He pulled a wad of gil out of his pocket, counted it out, then handed it to the bartender.  
The three Turks headed outside into the cool night. "So, where we headed tomorrow?" Elena asked suddenly. Reno shrugged and propped his Electro-mag Rod against his shoulder.  
"How 'bout Wutai?" Rude suggested. Reno thought for a second.  
"Sure. I heard that the Pest has disappeared, so Lord Godo might want someone to find her for him."  
"Thought we were supposed to be protecting the Black Materia and Sephiroth's Mesamune."  
Rude shook his head. "Reeve and Dio cut a deal. Dio protects the materia and sword if he gets to display them in the battle arena." Elena nodded.  
"Fair trade, I suppose. So, let's go meet Godo tomorrow, then." The three headed into a nice hotel and went to their rooms unaware of the shadow that had followed them from the bar and heard everything that they said.  
  
Chekhov looked up at the clock again. Miss Yuffie had been missing for 10 days and 12 hours now. Lord Godo paced in his room, afraid of what exactly may have happened to his seventeen-year-old daughter.  
Lord Godo had sent her on a mission with Shake as part of her ninja training. Shake came back the next day, but the young ninja had disappeared, and now Lord Godo was frantic.  
The PHS rang.  
"Hello?" Staniv answered. Tifa's voice was barely audible over the static.  
"Staniv? Let me speak with Lord Godo, please." Staniv handed the PHS to Lord Godo.  
"Yes, Tifa?"  
"Lord Godo, Cloud's awake, though it may take him a while to return to full health." Her joyfulness turned very serious. "Have you heard from Yuffie?"  
"No, I may have sent her on a mission too dangerous."  
"I'm sure she'll be fine," Tifa said reassuringly. "But, if it will make you feel better, the Turks are looking for work again, I believe they're in Glasgow right now. They might be helpful."  
"Yes, I might try them. Thank you, Tifa. Please tell Cloud to get well soon from all of us."  
"'Bye."  
"Goodbye, Tifa." Chekhov looked at Lord Godo disapprovingly. "Do you really think that the Turks would be much help? I mean, their reputation isn't all that good." Lord Godo sighed deeply and sat down.  
"They, and AVALANCHE may be our only hopes. Shake, you said the last place you saw her was where, again?"  
"Junon, sir."  
  
Yuffie saw the guard open the door and sat up. "Here," he said gruffly, handing the young ninja her tray. She looked at it disapprovingly.  
"C'mon! This is the best food you've got? I can do better than that, and I can't cook!"  
The guard walked past Yuffie to leave, and that's when she struck. She stuck out her foot, tripping him. then, she slammed her elbow into the back of his head, forcing his face into the concrete floor rather hard, breaking his nose and knocking him out. Yuffie headed out the open door and down the stair, then reached a fork in the road.  
Which way? she wondered silently. She'd been blind folded when they'd brought her in, so she had no clue as to which way to go or where she was.  
"Ah, Miss Yuffie," a voice said from behind her.  
"Damn," she implied, turning around to face an older, white haired man standing there. She turned to run, then saw four more men coming from each corridor. "Damn times two!" she swore.  
The older man's eyes sparkled with glee. "You've made it farther than last time, injuring one in the process, but to no avail." One of the men hit Yuffie hard in the head from behind, knocking her out.  
  
"Sir," Rohan said. "The men are bored. They don't want guard duty anymore, they want to train."  
"Rohan," the older, whire haired man replied to the dark haired teen. "Take them in shifts. Send some to train, some to be on guard, and some for sleep and eat. They get paid to guard, so that's what they'll do."  
Rohan sighed, "Yessir, Beorc." He turned on his heel and left the room, leaving Beorc alone.  
Beorc sat downat his desk and wrote a letter. He didn't sign it, but put his seal on it. He could almost feel the gil in his hands now, the gil that he was going to get from this kidnapping mission.  
  
A dark figure emerged on one of the roofs in Grasgow. It moved swiftly and silently from one roof to another, leaving no trace it was ever there. Someone may have found this as weird, if it were light enough to see, but it wasn't.  
Finally, Vincent hopped to the ground and headed towards the hospital. Night shift knew him, so he went on up to Cloud's room. He slipped in silently and saw Cloud and Tifa talking quietly.  
"Shouldn't you be resting?" he asked suddenly, causing Tifa and Cloud to jump.  
"Quit sneaking up on people like that," Tifa whispered fiercely.  
Vincent ignored the statement. "No sign of Yuffie anywhere, but I know what the deal Reeve was talking about is. He is letting Dio use Sephiroth's Mesamune and the black materia in his showcase in the battle arena in exchange for it being guarded. So, the Turks have decided to ask Lord Godo for a job."  
"Finding Yuffie?" Tifa asked, Vincent nodded. "Oh, boy. Wouldn't that be funny?  
"So," Vincent said, changing the subject. "When do you get out of here?"  
"Tomorrow," Cloud answered with a grin. "I'm in perfect health. I can walk, talk, feed myself, and do whatever I damn well please. So, Doc Samuels says I can leave first thing tomorrow morning."  
Vincent nodded. The PHS rang, so Cloud answered it. "'Ello?"  
"Cloud, this is Lord Godo." His tone was serious. "I need you to contact your friends."  
"Sure, why?"  
"I would like them to help find Yuffie. Have them meet at my palace.  
"Okay, Lord Godo. Bye."  
"Goodbye, Cloud."  
Cloud looked back at Tifa and Vincent. "Start calling everyone. We meet in Wutai tomorrow at the Emperial Palace."  
  
End of Chapter One: Miss Yuffie  
  
(A/N: Thank you all for reading and please review! {to herself: Oh, GAWD! I sound like such a geek!} So, please review. I'm shooting for at least ten reviews, but I'll settle for less. After I get two reviews, I'll post the next chapter.) 


	2. Chapter Two: Found

After Effects  
  
By: Yuffie Kisaragi  
(A/N: I got my two reviews! Thanks you two! ~tosses cookies to her fans~ Okay, ON WITH THE FIC! I hope you like it!)  
  
Chapter Two: Found  
  
"You. Like. Him" -Tifa Lockheart  
  
Yuffie struggled with the straps that held her down to the bed. They hadn't done anything to her yet, but she was going to make sure they didn't.  
*Almost there. * she thought, trying to pull her already red hand through the strap. It worked. She pulled a piece of metal out of her mouth and worked frantically with the other locks. Each one clicked open easily, then she hurried off the table.  
For the first time since she'd gained consciousness, she looked around the room. White walls, white tile floor, one wall made of a mirror, looked like a lab to her. *One-way glass?* she wondered. She glanced around the room again and saw a small metal table. She glared at the mirror/glass and walked over to the table.  
"Hell with you all!" she screamed and threw the metal table as hard as she could at the wall. It bounced off harmlessly, but she still felt better. "I'm gonna blow this joint," she muttered under her breath, and headed towards the door.  
Outside of the door were three guards, armed with guns. Yuffie's eyes got a mischievous look to them once again. She pulled a small green orb out of her headband and held it in her palms. "Fir 3," she whispered and all three guards burst into flames. She tried the door. Unlocked. Without thinking, she thrust open the door and ran down the hallway, tripping the alarm.  
Yuffie burst around the corner and saw the old man (Beorc, but she doesn't know his name). She smirked and, with an added burst of speed, jumped over him. A shot fired from behind her, a bullet ricocheted off her leg brace. "Oh, shit!" she said running off towards a set of stairs, but turned left into a closet. She looked around and saw her shuriken and precious materia. *Why keep them here?* she asked herself inwardly. She heard footsteps outside of the door. She grinned the grin of a trouble maker and burst out the door, casting Ice 3 on everyone, then took off towards a window. Her only escape.  
She looked down, two stories, not *that* big of a jump. She jumped down, then realized her mistake, five more guards below her. She pulled out another materia, quickly casting haste on herself, then stop on her enemies. She landed, her knee crunching. "Ow!" she cried out, then looked around the alley. She ran quickly, even with her left knee throbbing mercilessly. She looked around the street she was on. It looked familiar.  
"Junon!?!"  
  
Lord Godo continued to pace, although everyone from Avalanche was already at his palace.  
"Lord Godo?" Tifa asked finally. "Who are we waiting for? Everyone's here."  
"You'll see, Tifa," he said. The door opened, drawing everyone's attention and in walked the Turks. Elena's eyes got wide.  
She turned to Reno, "You never said that we were working with *them*!"  
"You never asked," Reno replied. Lord Godo stepped forward and shook Reno's hand.  
"Everyone needs to work together," he said, casting a look around the room. "I hope to find my daughter before something really bad happens."  
"If it hasn't already," Reno muttered.  
Cloud glared at him, "Lord Godo, sir. Where was the last place she was seen? That way we have an idea of where to look."  
Godo nodded. "The last place she was seen was in Junon. Please don't return without her. Dismissed."  
Everyone filed out of the palace.  
Reno and Rude walked behind Cloud and Tifa. "Seems Avalanche isn't very reliable anymore," Reno commented to Rude, who stayed quiet.  
"Seems the Turks are down to rescue missions for less money than they used to." Cloud shot back.  
"Says the fearless leader who has been taken over by Sephiroth before."  
Tifa glares at Reno, "Murderers!"  
"*We're* the murderers? Do you know how many people lost their lives when you all blew up those reactors? I had friends and family around that area. As did Elena and rude. Hell, I knew some of those soldiers you all killed. But *We're* the murderers." Reno rolled his eyes.  
Cloud brought up his sword and Reno pointed his night stick at him. They looked to be ready to exchange blows, when Vincent suddenly stepped between them.  
"We're working together for now. So, both of you, shut the hell up about the past and get along until Yuffie is safe at her palace again."  
Reno and Cloud glared at each other for a moment longer, then Cloud sheathed his sword and sighed. "You're right, let's go."  
Cid led the way to his now-fixed Highwind. Once inside, everyone assumed his or her normal places. Reeve with Cait, Yuffie's place empty, Elena on the deck watching the scenery, and Rude and Reno in the mission room chatting.  
  
"Beorc! She's escaped! Out on the streets now, sir!" Rohan hated giving the bad news.  
"No shit! Go find her!" Rohan started out the door when Beorc started after him. "Never mind, Rohan. You stay here. I will go with my select few." Rohan's eyes gleamed with hatred towards the old man, but Beorc paid no attention and walked out.  
  
Yuffie ran with a major limp slowing her down to the elevator. She took it down to the small town below. Once there, she looked around, trying to remember which house was a little girl that Cloud had once saved.  
"Yuffie?" a girl asked.  
"Priscilla!" Yuffie let out a sigh and started up the steps toward Priscilla, who was standing on her small porch. *Ow! Shit, I think I hurt my leg!* "Do you have a PHS or phone or something I could use?"  
"Nope, sorry. Where's Cloud?"  
Yuffie shrugged, panting heavily. "That's who I'm trying to get ahold of." She heard the elevator. It was slow, but not slow enough. "D'you have a chocobo I could buy for 100 gil?"  
"Yeah, sure. C'mon, to the stables." Priscilla sprinted down the steps, Yuffie hurrying behind her. Adrenaline keeping her from collapsing in pain. They were almost at the chocobo stables when a voice called out from behind them.  
"STOP!"  
"Shit," Yuffie pun around, shoving Priscilla behind her. Twelve guys were standing in formations of three stood with guns ready. She knew it would be stupid to try, but oh well. "Priscilla," she whispered through clenched teeth. "Run to the chocobo stables and stay there." Her hand dropped down to her shuriken and she heard Priscilla run to the stables. She waited, as did her opponents. One man flinched, and she sent her shuriken flying, beaming three fours guy in one hit. (Like dominoes, y'know. She hit the guy in front who tumbled backwards into the other three, guns going off and killing the others, yada yada. I hate writing fight scenes.)  
She pulled out an Ultima materia and that blasted the rest of them. She heard a muffled scream from behind her and whirled around to see the old man hold one hand over Priscilla's mouth. The other hand held a gun to the girl's temple.  
"Miss Yuffie, you need to come with us. Otherwise, you may be the reason of this little girl's death."  
Yuffie let out a sigh of defeat and dropped her bag of materia and her shuriken. The man started towards the elevator, Yuffie followed, her limp worsening. A shot was fired somewhere behind them and Beorc swung around to see a red head holding a gun.  
"Damn, I missed," he said, dropping the gun and picking up his night stick.  
"Reno!?!" Yuffie cried. Forgetting about the girl, Beorc loosened his grip on Priscilla's arm. She took her chance and sprinted away. Beorc reached out and caught hold of Yuffie's arm,  
"Take one step closer and she dies!" Reno looked as if he was going to take another step, then thought better of it.  
"Get out of here!" Yuffie cried suddenly. "You can save me some other time. The base is on the upper plate!" Beorc hit her in the face with the butt end of his hand gun. Yuffie cried out, then looked back at Reno meaningly. "I said get out of here! Go! NOW!" Reno looked taken aback. He was, after all, there to save her.  
"Yuffie," Reno growled. "I'm not leaving. I've got to finish my job." He glanced past the ninja and her attacker. Yuffie, catching the hint, suddenly ducked and caught Beorc off-guard. Poor Yuffie was instantly covered in blood and brain-matter.  
"Oh, GAWD! Disgusting!" she tried to wipe off, sitting on the ground, he legs out in front of her. Reno and Rude laughed.  
"Ready?" Reno asked. Yuffie went to stand up, but crumpled. Reno looked down at her, she was holding her left leg, a look of pain poorly camouflaged in her eyes.  
She hastily pulled out a restore materia and cast Cure 3 on herself. "Better?" Reno asked. She tried to stand up again, but only crumpled.  
"Are you alright?" Reno asked, walking over to her.  
"My leg got hurt." She explained how she'd escaped from the second story window and how the adrenaline must have kept her from crumpling. Reno laughed at her.  
"You," laugh. "Jumped!?! Out of." Laugh. "A second story." Laugh. "Window!?!" He laughed some more. Rude didn't look amused though.  
"It's not funny, RENO!" she screamed. She tried to use Cure 3 again.  
"Better?" he asked, finally stopped laughing.  
Yuffie stood up carefully and tried to take a step, and would've fallen over if Reno hadn't caught her. "No use. I must have torn something major."  
Reno looked at Rude, who shook his head and started walking away. "Aw! C'mon, man! I've got a bad back!" Rude ignored him and continued walking away. Yuffie looked at Reno quizzically. Reno sighed deeply, then picked her up.  
"H-Hey! P-Put me down!" Reno shifted her so that she was laying across his arms and supported her left leg as well as he could. "Reno!"  
"Nope."  
"Rape!" she screamed.  
"Everyone knows that I'm trying to help you. So, do yourself out and just wrap your arms around my neck so you don't fall." Yuffie glared at him and wrapped her arms around his neck. His eyes flashed and he grinned at her.  
"Oh, Gawd!"  
  
Cloud looked around, Elena was the only Turk who hadn't taken off, Rude and Reno had disappeared.  
"Let's take shifts," Barret suggested suddenly.  
"We won't have to," Elena replied, pointing at Rude and Reno, who was still carrying Yuffie in the same position. "They've already rescued her."  
Cloud met them halfway, Yuffie was glaring at Reno still. "What's the matter, Yuffie? Why aren't you walking?"  
"She hurt her leg. How far of a walk to the Highwind?" Reno asked.  
"Too far to make before night fall, so we're going to make camp." Cloud replied. He was probably right. The sky was already turning a deep shade of violet. "Let me take her from here."  
"No," Reno replied quickly. Yuffie and Cloud both looked at him, surprised. "If we trade her off, it could worsen her knee injury. I can take her the 20 feet from here to the camp."  
*What the hell has gotten into him?* Yuffie wondered. Reno carried her to where they'd started making camp. He set her down gently, then took off his jacket.  
"You'll need to keep it propped up, okay?" He slipped his jacket under her left leg.  
Yuffie was amazed at how nice he could be when he wanted to. "Yeah, Kay. Can you have Tifa or someone come over here to help me get my brace off? It's hard to do without bending my knee. Besides, it'll help keep the swelling down and it'll be easier to figure out what's wrong."  
Reno shrugged, "Where's it unhook?"  
Yuffie's eyes got as big as saucers. "*You* don't know how to figure out what's wrong with it."  
"What are you talking about? I'm trained in first aid. Now, where's your brace unhook?"  
Yuffie sighed and reached into her pocket for a screwdriver, then handed it to him. "Upper thigh." Reno grinned. "You go higher than my brace and Barret will kill you, if I don't first!" Reno reached up her shorts a little and unhooked her brace. "And at the bottom of the brace." Reno unhooked it.  
"Where's it hurt the most?"  
Yuffie looked up into his blue eyes and felt her pulse quicken slightly. "Above the knee cap."  
"Okay, now hold onto something so you don't try to hit me or anything when it hurts too bad." Yuffie laid her hands flat on the ground on either sides of her. She felt Reno's warm hands feeling around her kneecap. She cringed in pain when he hit the tender spots, pulling up big lumps of grass. After what seemed like an eternity to Yuffie (only about 1 minute) Reno stopped. She sighed and loosened her grip on the grass.  
"Well, I think you sprained your knee. The muscle is tender, which may mean that it's bruised. I'll find some ice, pillows, and a blanket for you. You really need to keep it propped up." He walked off towards everyone else to get what he needed, or rather, what Yuffie needed. Tifa walked over to her.  
"Hey, kiddo. How's your leg?"  
"Reno says that it's sprained. Bruised the muscle or something like that." Tifa followed her gaze, which was following Reno's silhouette. Tifa giggled. "What?" Yuffie looked at Tifa, the look of being confused plain on her face.  
"You like Reno," Tifa replied with another giggle.  
"Nu-uh!" Yuffie replied angrily.  
"Admit it!" Tifa whispered. "You. Like. Him."  
"Okay, but you can't tell anyone! Or...Or...I'll tell Barret where you were last week!"  
"I was out house-shopping."  
"Yeah, right. You were by Cloud's side the whole time! And I was being held captive and knew that!" Yuffie glanced up and saw Reno approaching. Tifa glanced back, then winked at Yuffie and left.  
"Hey, Pest. Brought you a bag of ice, a couple of pillows, and a blanket. Want help propping your leg up?"  
"Yeah, I can't hold my leg up, keep it straight, and put the pillow under it."  
"Okay. I'll hold it up, slip my jacket out, and you put the pillow under." Yuffie nodded. "On three. One..Two..Three!" The plan worked perfectly, only causing Yuffie some severe pain. She let out a small yelp.  
She closed her eyes to hold back the tears, but failed. A solitary tear streaked down her face and she felt a hand wipe it away softly. She opened her eyes and saw Reno sitting beside her, one hand one her cheek, and looking at her with a soft look in his eyes.  
"Get off me," she said softly, but firmly. He brought his hand back and the cold look returned to his eyes.  
"Sorry, Pest. Here's your blanket. 'Night!" He walked away.  
"Damn," she said softly to herself.  
  
Reno couldn't understand what had happened. One minute, he's making sure she'll be okay, a tear streaks down her face. The next, he's wiping away the tear and wanting to kiss her. She tells him to leave her alone, and boom1 There he is. Alone by the fire, on first watch...with Vampire Boy.  
  
End of Chapter Two: Found  
  
(A/N: Thanks for reading. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Longer than the first, I think. I'm not sure if this will end up completely like a Reno/Yuffie fic, but maybe it will have more romance later on. As always, Review! {*sigh* Oh, Gawd! There's no way to make this sound like it came out of my mouth! ACK!}) 


	3. Chapter Three: Blood and Roses

After Effects  
by: Yuffie Kisaragi  
  
(A/N: Wow, this title seems a bit gross, but it's not meant to be. Oh, well! You'll understand it after you read it. Someone e-mailed me asking if this fic was going to have an Aeris resurrection in it, but I can't lie to you all. I absolutely HATE Aeris Gainsborough. She's an annoying brat who is a little do-gooder. So, if she ends up resurrected, you can bet that I'm going to torture her. I'm so happy! ~Hands out pop (soda) and cookies to all her fans, a whole four people!~ I've got two more reviews! WOOHOO! Okay, I'll shut my mouth now so you can get on with the fic! Enjoy!)  
  
Chapter Three: Blood and Roses  
"I hoped that maybe one of you might be her blood type." -Lord Godo  
  
Yuffie was awake before anyone else, and hungry. The fire had gone out during the night and whoever was on last watch must've fallen asleep. She sat up and tested her leg, it was swollen and sore, but she thought she'd live. She hooked her leg brace on and cast Cure 3 again. Nothing. The young ninja crawled towards the fire pit, dragging her sore leg.  
"Fire," she whispered, and the fire started up again. She leaned back on her hands and watched the sunrise, waiting for everyone else to wake up. The oranges, yellows, and greens looked like a pastel drawing.  
"Beautiful, isn't it?" Yuffie turned and saw Reno standing behind her.  
"Yeah, it's purdy, but sunsets in Wutai atop Da Chao can't be beat. Now, *that's* what you'd call beautiful."  
Reno looked down at her curiously. "I thought I told you to keep that leg propped up."  
"It's fine. Damn, you're starting to sound like Godo!"  
Eventually everyone woke up on their own, except Cid. It took Cloud, Reeve, and Red to wake him up. Tifa made some breakfast and everyone ate well. Cloud walked over to Yuffie when everyone started packing up. "C'mon, I'll carry you to the Highwind."  
"I can walk," she replied defiantly and stood up. She tried to take a step and Reno caught her.  
"I'll carry her," her said with a shrug. "It's not like she weighs a lot. I actually think she weighs less than my pack."  
"No." Yuffie stated firmly. "I just need some support. I can walk." Reno ignored all of her protests and picked her up again. "No!" she screamed one last time.  
Reno started walking again, so she gave up, wrapping her arms around his neck again and casting him another dirty look.  
  
By the time they'd reached Wutai, Yuffie had rigged herself a splint and found a set of crutches. It was close to sun set when they arrived, so she excused herself to her room, claiming she was tired. The young ninja disappeared from her room and climbed to the hand of Da Chao to watch the sun set. She carefully sat down and watched the reds, yellows, and purples fill the sky over Wutai.  
"You were right. This is beautiful."  
"Reno." she stated. "Why did you come here?" She never took her eyes off the horizon, afraid to look at him.  
"You said that a sun set atop Da Chao couldn't be beat. You were right, it's much better than the sun rise we saw this morning." He dropped his cigarette on the ground and crushed it with his heel, then sat down next to her. He looked at her face, and she turned and gazed into his blue eyes. His face drifted down to hers, but she turned her head.  
"Go away, Reno. You're lonely, so get a few drinks at the bar and go find yourself a hooker." Yuffie struggled to her feet, then made her way down the mountain, leaving Reno befuddled once again.  
"Was it something I did?"  
  
The next day, Lord Godo had his physician look at Yuffie's leg.  
"Vell, she haz injured eet worze trying to walk on eet. She tore ze cartiledge, which will entail zurgery." ~(A/N: If you're wondering what exactly he said it was "Well, she has injured it worse trying to walk on it. She tore the cartiledge, which will entail surgery." I get really into some of my accents ^_^)~  
"Surgery? No way! Not me! I don't tolerate pain very well!" Dr. Odine ignored her protests and scheduled her surgery for later that day. Everyone wished her luck and Tifa hugged her.  
Reno walked up to her, "Sorry I misdiagnosed it." Yuffie shrugged, but stayed silent. "You get well soon."  
  
Cloud and Tifa sat on a love seat in their hotel room. "Hope she does all right," Tifa said suddenly.  
"She tougher than we give her credit for. Besides, she's matured a lot since we first met her." Tifa smiled and look up at him, then sighed. Yuffie's secret was driving her insane.  
"Cloud? Can I tell you something? Without you telling *anyone* else?"  
"Of course!"  
  
"Well, y'know how Reno's been really helpful with Yuff alluva sudden?" Cloud nodded. "Well, Yuff kinda...er...likes him now."  
Cloud's jaw dropped and his eyes widened. "She WHAT!?!"  
"Yeah, I know. And know what's really weird? I overheard Reno talking to Rude about staying in Wutai a little while longer, he was practically begging him to stay." Cloud looked thoughtful. "D'ya think that maybe Reno..."  
"No way, Teef! Reno's a Turk, he was probably waiting around for another job to pop up. Besides, he still calls her Pest."  
"Yeah, I guess you're right." *Poor Yuffie, though. Hoping for Reno, but the Turk is such a jerk. *  
  
"Lub. Dub.. Lub. Dub.. Lub.. Dub... Lub... Dub...." The heart beat got slower and slower, Sephiroth appeared above the young woman in a pink dress. He came down swiftly, driving his sword through the young woman's chest. Straight through the heart, no one could live through that.  
Cloud watched in disbelief as blood poured on the floor beneath her. An evil laugh that had haunted him since he was sixteen rang through the air. Sephiroth looked at him and a chill ran down his spine, then a sudden rage filled him. He tried with all his might to run forward, to hold Aeris in his arms and comfort her in her dying moments.  
"No!" He tried to scream, but couldn't. He saw Tifa coming up behind him. Two Sephiroth's appeared, one beside Aeris, who was dying, and one beside Tifa.  
"Which one? The one that's alive and breathing? Or the one that's dead? Who are you going to hold onto?" Sephiroth's evil voice asked. Cloud looked at Tifa, her eyes wide with fear, then at Aeris, almost dead. Both Sephiroth's raised their Mesamune's. Cloud lunged at Tifa, shoving her out of the way. "You chose," Sephiroth said and Aeris disappeared.  
  
Yuffie woke up the day after her surgery to balloons and flowers in her hospital room. A nurse walked in carrying a basket and a vase of roses.  
"Who're they all from?" Yuffie asked, noticing what was in the basket. Materia.  
"Ah, Miss Yuffie, you're awake. They're from Avalanche mostly, but you have a couple of balloons from the Turks, along with an arrangement of flowers from your father."  
"Who're those from?" she asked, indicating to the roses.  
"Anonymous. Here," she handed the basket of materia to her patient. "The roses have a note with them if you would like to read it."  
"Naw, I'll read it once I get home. Wow, I only had a minor surgery and get all this? Wonder what would happen if I got really sick," she said with a sly grin. The nurse shook her head and left after setting down the roses. Yuffie rooted through the materia and found a restore materia, then cast Cure 3 on her incision. It closed up immediately, leaving only a minimum amount of scarring.  
A doctor walked in. "Hello, Ms. Kisaragi, I'm Dr. Choffman. I operated on your knee." He looked at her healed up incision. "I see that you've already healed it. Well, I still want you off of it for another day, okay?" He looked around the room. "You must have a lot of friends, how old are you again?"  
"Seventeen, eighteen in a month."  
"Well, you can go home today. Your knee should be completely healed by the time your birthday rolls around." A blonde nurse walked in pushing a wheel chair. Yuffie reluctantly sat down in it, a new brace on her leg, this one from her thigh to her ankle. The nurse pushed her to the entrance, where a black car and Godo waited for her.  
"Oh, Gawd! Do I have to go back there?"  
"Yes," Lord Godo replied. "Come on, get into the car." Yuffie got into the backseat, Godo in the passenger's seat, and Shekloft driving.  
  
Vincent sat in the corner of the bar alone when the blonde Turk, Elena, walked over to him. "Mind if I sit here?" she asked.  
"Sure."  
"Those guys can be such jerks sometimes, especially Reno."  
Vincent stared down into his beer, almost surprised by Elena's behavior. Usually she was an annoying busy body who didn't know how to shut up, but she seemed so depressed. "Did he say something that upset you?"  
Elena looked at him. "You're not as 'bad-ass-I-don't-care' as everyone thinks you are."  
"Yeah, well. Don't let that get around. I *do* have a reputation to keep."  
Elena laughed. "Reno told me that I don't I have what it takes to be a Turk, told me that I should be with you all. You know, Avalanche. So, I'm going to quit the Turks."  
  
"And join Avalanche?" Elena nodded. Vincent looked at her clothes. "First, you'd need a wardrobe change."  
The soon to be ex-Turk nodded. "I know, I'm going shopping tomorrow. Would you come with me? You could use a wardrobe change too, you know." Vincent looked at his own clothes.  
"What's wrong with my wardrobe?"  
"Oh, nothing. If you were a vampire."  
  
Yuffie got out of the car and limped up the front steps, it was painful, but she despised crutches. She got inside and saw all of Avalanche plus Marlene, minus Reeve and Vincent.  
"Hey!" Tifa said hurrying over to the young materia hunter. "What do you think you're doing without your crutches?"  
"I'm fine," Yuffie said. "It ain't nothin' I can't deal with. Where's Vinny and Reeve?"  
"Vincent was going to the bar for a while and Reeve will be here shortly," Cid answered.  
Yuffie shrugged it off. "Oh, thanks for the new materia, guys!" Tifa looked back at Cloud, who looked at Barret, until everyone in the room was confused. "You didn't get me the materia?"  
Tifa shook her head, "No. We sent about a kazillion cards, flowers, and balloons. I don't know who sent you the materia."  
"Yuffie, to bed." a voice said from behind her. It was Godo, so she started off. "At! Crutches!" He handed her a set of crutches and she started to protest, but was cut off when three figures appeared in the doorway.  
"Hey, gimp," Reeve said, handing her six new materia.  
Yuffie grinned broadly, "Thanks!" Than, she started the hop to her room. Cloud looked at Vincent and Elena.  
"Why's she here?"  
"Because," Vincent started, but Elena shook her head. "She was wondering how Yuffie was doing," he lied.  
  
Reno looked at Rude. "Think we should go check on the Pest?"  
Rude looked back at him suspiciously. "I think you like her."  
"What!?! No way! I just thought that, well, y'know. Maybe we should check on her. That's all." Reno looked flushed and mighty flustered.  
Rude laughed, causing Reno to go crimson. "You like Miss Yuffie Kisaragi." Reno shot him a dagger look. "Okay, we'll go check on her." They paid for their drinks and walked out of the bar towards Godo's palace.  
  
Yuffie finally got situated and started reading the cards she'd received. Most said things like 'Get Well Soon' or 'I Hope You Feel Better.' The roses intrigued her, so she decided to save them for last. When she finally got to them, she smelled them. They were a deep red, almost purple and smelled sweet. She started to open the envelope when her bedroom door opened. In walked the familiar red head Turk, followed by the bald Turk. Yuffie sighed heavily and set the card aside, it would have to wait.  
"Hey, Pest," Reno said, sitting down in a chair.  
"Whaddya want, Reno? I know you can't be here on 'Official Turk's Business.' And it's highly doubtful that you came to check up on me."  
"On the contrary, Yuffie. We came to check up on you."  
Yuffie's eyes got wide with surprise. "You used my name! Who are you and what did you do with the heartless Turk named Reno?" Reno's eyes flashed and Rude scoffed. "I take it back, leave him there!"  
Rude did his best to cover his laughter, but it didn't work very well. "I know when I'm not wanted," Reno said with mock depression.  
"Goodbye, Rude. Bye, Reno." The two Turks walked out of her room. Yuffie yawned and, forgetting all about the roses and the card, fell asleep.  
  
A younger Yuffie, about eleven, walked through the forest alone, waiting for her next victim or victims. A chocobo drawn carriage came along the narrow path. *Must be something important to be guarded by two Turks,* she thought silently. *That would really suck if they suddenly got a broken axle.* She picked up a sharp rock and flung it, hitting her target, and causing the axle to break.  
"Shit!" One of the Turks exclaimed. The younger one jumped down and looked at the axle.  
"Rach, sir! The axle's been busted! Do we have another axle?"  
"Well, Reno, did you pack one?" Rach snapped.  
"No, sir. I'm sorry, I must've forgotten."  
"You forgot. How the hell did you get made into a Turk? You're too bloody stupid!" Reno looked down at the ground. A shot was fired from somewhere to the right of her and struck Rach dead. Reno looked down the path and a man ran. Reno didn't pursue. Yuffie let a small cry escape her and Reno looked over at her.  
"You!" Yuffie turned to run, but underestimated the young man's speed. He caught her arm. "Shit, you can't be more than eight or nine. Where ya from?"  
Yuffie shot him a dagger look, "C'mon, lemme go!" She knew not to answer from Wutai. Anyone from Wutai was to be shot on sight, because of the war going on.  
"Not until you answer me!"  
"Midgar. Sector Seven Slums. Now, lemme go!"  
"Sector Seven, eh? Never saw you 'round there before, but I've only been there on Official Turk Business. How old are you?"'  
Yuffie, realizing it was useless to try to pull herself free, stopped struggling. "Eleven."  
"Really? I'm fifteen." Yuffie realized that the young Turk was alone and let her free hand drop down to her shuriken. "Where's the nearest store?"  
"Depends, if you're looking to buy an axle, I can fix it for ya. For a price, of course."  
"Okay, if you fix it, I'll let you live." Reno pulled out a gun and held it to her temple. The eleven-year-old's hand dropped away from her shuriken. She pulled away and started to fix the axle. Fifteen minutes later, she woke up, her head hurting severely and a note in her hand.  
  
Tifa followed Cloud on her chocobo. He'd successfully bred four golden chocobos, and they were using two of them. She took a deep breath and rode up beside Cloud. If she was going to tell him, it was now or never. "Cloud? I.." she was cut off by the PHS.  
"Hang on a second, Teef." Then into the PHS, "Hello? Shit!" He brought his chocobo to a halt. "Yeah, we'll be there." He turned to Tifa. "We're going back to Wutai. I'll explain it when we get there." They spurred their chocobos on.  
  
Vincent leaned against the wall, waiting for Elena to come out of the dressing room. He didn't have to wait long and she came out wearing a pair of blue jeans and a red halter-top. "What do you think?" she asked, spinning around to show him.  
Vincent, realizing his mouth was open, answered quickly. "It looks great. Definitely you." Elena bought the outfit, then ripped out the knees.  
"There. Much better." A ringing interrupted them. "Hello?" she said into her cell. "Oh, hello Reno. His name's Vincent not Fang Boy, and yes he's here. Okay, I'll tell him. Bye." She looked at Vincent. "Something's happened to Yuffie. We need to get to Lord Godo's quick."  
  
"Dammit, Shera!" Cid screamed at the woman with luggage leaving. "Get your ass back in here!"  
"No, not until you apologize to me for being a jackass. Until then, I'll be living with Elmyra in Somililand." With that, she got into the Tiny Bronco and left. Cid stared at the sky, and the PHS rang.  
"Hello? Hey, Barret. Yeah, I'll come get you. Wutai? Shit! Damn, I hope that scrawny ass ninja's okay! Uh-huh! Bye!" Cid got into his newest toy, a jet named Gospel. "For you, Aeris!" was the inscription above the mission room door.  
  
The eleven-year-old Yuffie stood up and stretched trying to shake the throbbing from her head, but the scene whirled. She found herself fighting against Reno and Rude in Gongaga with Cloud and Aeris.  
Reno attacked with his nightstick, but she easily dodged. She tried to hit him with her shuriken, but barely missed. "That all you got?" he asked after his close encounter with her shuriken. This set the sixteen- year-old ninja over the edge. She hit him with a Fire2 spell, and Cloud hit him with the cross slash. Reno glanced at his watch.  
"Time to go," he said and left. Rude followed shortly after. The scene whirled again and she was in darkness. A female voice that she hadn't heard since she was seven spoke. Her mother's.  
"Why do you like that Turk?" she asked angrily. That was the only way Yuffie ever remembered her mother. Angry and screaming. Another voice from her past joined her mother's.  
"You know, he liked me."  
"Aeris?" Yuffie asked. The ninja girl didn't like Aeris that much when she was alive and didn't have the same trouble as everyone else when she died.  
"He told me once when he captured me to take me to Hojo. He even let me off the hook a couple of times. Said that I had a lot of spunkyness." ~(A/N: Is that even a word? My Spell Check let me use it, so I'm guessing it's a word ^_^)~ Yuffie tried to block out the voices.  
Another voice joined, Cloud's. "Reno doesn't like you, so get over him already."  
Then, Cid's voice. "Don't go wastin' your frickin' time on that jackass!" A hand was on her shoulder. She spun around.  
"Reno!?!"  
"You've got a lot of guts, Pest. Telling everyone that you like me. I don't like you. So, go away!" The voices all talked at once, then Reno laughed a horrible evil laugh that sounded like Sephiroth's, then everything disappeared. Yuffie collapsed to her knees and sobbed.  
  
"Why are we here?" Tifa asked Lord Godo.  
"Yuffie was attacked. Someone slit her wrists and Shake found her near death. She needs blood." He looked around the room, showing his true age on his face for once. "I hoped that maybe one of you might be her blood type."  
  
End of Chapter Three: Blood and Roses  
  
(A/N: WOW! That was really long! Okay, so the title isn't as gruesome now, is it? So.. who's blood will she get? Or will she get the transfusion like she needs? What the hell am I talking about? It's my fic! I already know! hee hee hee! Kay! So, review and I'll update it soon. Oh, yeah! The reason I added the part 'bout Yuffie not really liking Aeris, is because if you pay attention during the game, Aeris and Yuffie don't really get along all that well. So, me being the Aeris Hater I am, I decided to put that tid bit in there. Sorry to those of you who love Aeris, but I thought she was annoying, more so than Yuffie. So, till next time! {I actually sound like me for once! WOOHOO!!} Review!) 


	4. Chapter Four: Derek Sherum

After Effects  
By: Yuffie Kisaragi  
  
~(A/N: Weeeeeellll now. I'm bored, so I thought I'd go ahead and type up this chapter and try to post it. Last time, Godo announced to everyone that Yuffie had been attacked and that her wrists were slit. He called everyone to see if anyone had the same blood type as she. Soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo....Read and Review!)~  
  
Chapter Four: Derek Sherum "I was thinking more along the lines of Destruction or Destructor." -Derek  
Sherum  
  
"Vincent, Barret, and I can't donate," Cloud said, looking at the floor.  
"Whatcha mean, I can't donate! 'Course I can!" Barret practically yelled. It was true that Yuffie could be a pain, but she was almost like family to him at this point.  
"You've had an amputated arm, then a gun grafted in." Vincent replied from the corner. "Cloud has Mako and Jenova cells inside of him, and I have the Chaos beast inside of me."  
"I've got B," Tifa said, wondering what blood type the young materia hunter was.  
Godo, catching the uncertainty in Tifa's voice, nodded. "She needs A negative or O negative blood types." He looked around the room. Everyone either shook their heads or looked down at the ground, no one spoke. Lord Godo sighed. "They'll continue to try and find a match at the hospital, but... If she doesn't get the blood transfusion within 23 hours, she'll..." His voice trailed off, everyone knowing what he meant. First, she'd go into a coma, and eventually they'd have to unplug her, killing her.  
Tifa closed her eyes, fighting back tears. "She's only seventeen," Cloud heard her whisper under her breath.  
Everyone stayed silent, no one wanting to believe that the seventeen-year-old thief was going to die. One voice broke the silence. "I'm an A neg." Tifa's head shot up and she looked at Reno, usually so full of arrogance, but now so... scared? Tifa looked at his face, his eyes, usually hiding his emotions well, failed to camouflage his sadness and uncertainty. Could he actually...?  
*No,* Tifa thought silently. *Surely, he and Yuffie can't... There's just no possible way they could... Not without everyone or at least someone knowing!*  
"I was trying to think if there was any reason that I couldn't donate." He glanced at Rude. "The Turks didn't have to get injected with Mako, since they relied mostly on skill of stealth rather than strength. I've never been used as a lab rat, and never even had a serious cold. So, I should be able to, right?"  
  
Aliah sat on her hospital bed reading a book. She looked about seventeen or eighteen and had long black hair down to her knees and emerald green eyes. Her hair was tied back, leaving out her bangs that were to her chin. She was reading a journal that she'd written when she was ten and in the hospital for the second time since she'd woken in the hospital when she was nine.  
"Miss Shakra," a nurse said, walking into the room. "Is your migraine better now?"  
Aliah smiled, and put the journal away. "Yeah, it's better. You don't have to worry about ducking behind things right now." The nurse smiled back at her and Aliah noticed the lunch cart. "I don't suppose that my lunch is a steak."  
The nurse laughed, "No, I'm sorry, my dear. But it's the best Turkey Hot Shot in five cities." She started to set the lunch on a small table near Aliah, when Aliah put her hand up to her left temple. She cried out in pain, and closed her eyes tightly. The nurse hit the call button and a nurse's aid came quickly. "Go get Dr. Odine. NOW!" The aid did as she was told.  
Aliah opened her eyes and tried to focus on anything, but her vision blurred. Sounds ran together, and all was black. In the place of an eighteen-year-old girl was a huge black demon with wings and fiery red eyes. (A/N: Chaos beast, anyone!?!) It let out a tremendous roar, which brought the doctor even faster.  
"Aliah! Thiz haz got to ztop! Ze patternz, Aliah!" The demon's eyes turned to emerald green as the girl fought to regain control. She thought about a complicated number pattern and soon was herself again.  
She looked at the doctor, "I controlled it! I did it!"  
Dr. Odine smiled, "Yes, yes. You controlled it." He started to go on, but a voice over the inercom interrupted him, calling him to go to the lab. He left in a hurry, so Aliah didn't get to question him about anything.  
  
Reno sat down in the chair and rolled up his sleeve, exposing his arm. The lab technition put on the turnicut and drew blood using a buterfly needle. ~(A/N: Hah! Being the daughter of a medical assisstant can be really cool every now and then!)~ "Okay, sir. You're finished." The lab tech said, taking off the turnicut.  
Reno rolled down his sleeve and put his jacket, then started out the door. "Oh!" He spun around to face the lab technition. "Do you know what room Miss Yuffie Kisaragi is in?"  
The lab tech nodded. "Yeah, room 354."  
"Thanks," Reno replied and headed out into the hall. He walked to the end of the corridor, to the elevator, and up to the second floor. Then, he followed the numbers to room 354, ICU. ~(A/N: ICU is an abbreviation for Intensive Care Unit.)~  
A nurse stopped him before he could enter her room. "I'm sorry, sir, but I need a name before you can enter."  
"Reno Tarksin."  
"Oh! Mr. Tarksin. You're the one who's donating blood. You may enter, sir." Reno nodded a thanks and walked in. He looked around the room, for some reason he was actually surprised about how dark it was. The only light came from a window and fell across Yuffie's bed. He looked at the young ninja girl.  
She had bandages on each of her wrists, a breathing tube, and an I.V. She looked completely helpless and Reno really didn't like to see her like that. She was pale and her eyes were closed. The red-head Turk walked across the small hospital room and took hold of her hand, It was so cold.  
To his surprise, ~(A/N: But maybe not yours)~ she flinched. His eyes went wide. *Maybe if I talk to her,* he though silently.  
"Uhh...Hey, Yuffie. It's me...Reno. I....er...Wow...I'm completely at a loss on what to say. Tell you what, you make it through this and remember this promise...And I'll...er...One date, kiddo." He shrugged, he really didn't know what to say. Anything to get her to wake up, he'd try. His hand was still holding hers, warming it. He started to set her hand back down on the bed, but she squeezed his hand. He stared at her face. She opened her eyes and looked like she was trying to focus on his face. He stared into her dark brown eyes.  
"Y-Yuff? Yuffie?" Her eyes closed and her grip was limp once again. He lifted her hand and kissed it, then set it down on the bed and walked out.  
  
Cloud sat on the hard bench in the waiting room. All around him, his friends whispered, waiting for news about the youngest member of Avalanche. Tifa came over and sat down next to him.  
"Cloud?" He looked at her. "I have something I want...No..I *need* to tell you." Cloud looked at her carefully. What was she getting at? "Cloud, I...I love you."  
Cloud's eyes widened. She *what*? "Tifa...I...I don't know what to say."  
Tifa looked at the floor. "I understand. You still miss Aeris. I just had to get that off my chest. It was eating away at me." *I'm such a moron!*  
Cloud shook his head and grabbed her hand. "That's not it, Tifa! Not at all. I love you too, but I was afraid to tell you." Tifa looked back at him and smiled.  
She started to say something, but Dr. Odine came out. Everyone looked at him, but Barret and Reno stood up. "Vell," the doctor started. "She'z doing much better. Mr. Reno, your blood may have done ze trick. She should be juzt fine and you should be able to zee her tomorrow in room763." He turned and walked into his office.  
"763," Tifa repeated softly to herself.  
"Which means she'll be out of ICU," Elena added. A wave of relief swept across the room. Elena suddenly approached Cloud. "Can I talk to you?"  
"Sure."  
"Could I...er...join AVALANCHE?"  
Reno's jaw dropped. "ELENA!?!?"  
Cloud looked around at his friends. Cid shrugged, Red didn't object, Barret nodded once, and it was obvious that Vincent didn't care. He turned to Reeve, who shrugged, and then to Tifa. At first, he was certain she'd say no, but then she smiled.  
"Welcome to AVALANCHE, Elena."  
Elena grinned. "Thank you, Tifa, Cloud, everyone." She turned to Reno. "Oh, yeah. I quit. Didn't you say I didn't make a very good Turk? Well, then find yourself a new Turk!" No one noticed, because they were all too busy laughing at Reno's shicked look, but a smile crossed Vincent's face. A small one, but a smile none-the-less.  
  
Yuffie woke up around one the next morning. She looked around the room she was in, it wasn't her room, the room she went to sleep in. She remembered a burning pain in her wrists, hearing Reno say something and looking up into his blue eyes. Her throat hurt and she remembered a breathing tube. A lump in the chair in the corner stirred. She strained to see who it was and could make out red hair.  
"Reno?" she asked hoarsely. The figure looked at her.  
"Yuffie?" It asked with a yawn.  
"Reno," the young ninja said with a sigh. "Where am I?"  
"In room 763 at Wutai Hospital. Do you remember anything?" He was next to her bed now.  
"I fell asleep after you and Rude left, then felt a burning pain in my wrists, heard your voice, felt a tube get yanked outta my throat, and now this...What happened?" She tried to sit up, but felt naseous.  
"Lay down. You've been out for three days. Shake went in and someone had slit your wrists. You had a blood transfusion yesterday. Godo called everyone to see if anyone had the same blood type."  
Yuffie looked down at her arms. There were bandages on her wrists. "Whose blood did I get?"  
"Tomorrow. Right now, you need rest."  
"Kay, but answer me one thing?"  
Reno stretched, "What's that?"  
"Why are *you* here instead of someone from AVALANCHE?"  
Reno smiled sleepily. "I've got guard duty tonight." What he neglected to tell her was that he had *volunteered* for guard duty all night.  
  
Aliah walked down the hospital corridor, seeing the same names as yesterday, some more, some gone. She walked past room 763, but the name caught her attention. "Yuffie Kisaragi?" she asked herself, as if unbelieving. She walked over to a nurse. "Is Miss Yuffie Kisaragi in room 763?" The nurse nodded. "Lord Godo's daughter?"  
"Yes, you should meet her, Miss Aliah. You and she might get along."  
"I might, thanks." She walked back towards Yuffie's room. She entered slowly and saw Yuffie glaring at a guy in the corner.  
"Yuffie, I told you! I don't know!" the guy said.  
"Reno, you JERK! You said..." she followed his look and saw the dark haired girl. "Aliah?" Her eyes went wide.  
"Yup! How ya doin', Yuffers?"  
"Oh, Gawd! I can't believe that you remember my nick name!" She struggled to sit up.  
"Yuffie," Reno said warningly. "Lay down, your father would throw a fit."  
"Oh, shuddup, Reno! Go...Get something to eat.." As if summoned by this statement, Reno's stomach growled.  
"Sherum's in the hospital too." Aliah said suddenly.  
"Sherum?"  
"Derek Sherum. You and he were like brother and sister, then you took off when we were fifteen."  
"Oh, Derek! Why's he here? I kinda figured why you were.."  
"Ahem," Both girls looked over at Reno. "I'm going to go get something to eat." He started out the door. "Oh! And don't get up." He left and Yuffie stuck out her tongue. Aliah laughed.  
"Who was that guy?"  
"Reno? Oh! He's Reno Tarksin of the Turks." She saw Aliah's eyes go wide. "He's always trahing my fun.  
"But, wow. Is he gorgeous or what?" Aliah added with a laugh. Yuffie rolled her eyes.  
"So, why's Derek here?"  
"He was doing something and fell from a 100 foot drop. I was going to go see him today, since he just came in yesterday. I only know all this, because I overhear the nurses talking. He broke his leg and was lucky nothing really major didn't happen. How 'bout you? Why're you here again?"  
"I had knee surgery, then the day I went home, an assassination attmept, including my wrists being slashed. Who would be so stupid unless they were trying to say I was going to commit suicide." She swung her legs over the side of the bed. "I had a blood transfusion and was out for a while." She stood up slowly. "How 'bout you? Demon, still?"  
"Yeah. Hey, how 'bout I get you a wheelchair and we'll go visit Lotulis?" Aliah hurried out of the room and returned a few moments later with a wheelchair. Yuffie reluctantly say down in the wheelchair.  
"What room?"  
"739, way down on the West Wing. Ready?"  
"Driver," Yuffie said with a grin. "To room 739, West Wing, Wutai Hospital."  
"Aye, aye, ma'am!" Aliah replied with the tip of an imaginary hat. The two girls laughed and started down the hallway when a spiky headed guy, a girl with long dark brown hair, and a large black man with a little girl on his shoulder rounded the corner.  
"Shit," Yuffie muttered under her breath, then, "Hi, guys!" Aliah pulled th chair to a stop in front of the group.  
"Yuffie! What are you doing awake! And out of bed!?!" the dark haired girl asked.  
Yuffie ignored the question. "Aliah, these are my friends from AVALANCHE. The siky jerk is Cloud Strife, the girl is Tifa Lockheart, the large black guy is Barret Wallace, and his daughter is Marlene Wallace."  
"Hello," Aliah said with a smile. "My name is Aliah."  
Cloud was mesmerized by Aliah's emerald eyes, they reminded him so much of Aeris's. *Stop it!* he commanded himself. *I love Tifa Lockheart. Aeris was just a stupid little crush. Everyone was effected by her death, even Vincent, Cid, and Barret! So, stop it now!*  
"We're going to visit an old friend, Derek Sherum. He's in room..er..."  
"739," Aliah finished for the ninja. "We'll only be a few minutes."  
"Okay," Cloud said. "Be back in a few minutes, otherwise Dr. Odine and Lord Godo will throw a fit."  
"Alrigh', we'll meetcha atcher room." Barret said and the four started off the opposite direction that Yuffie and Aliah did.  
When the girls arrived at their destination, the door was slightly ajar. Aliah pushed it open and they saw a game console and t.v. The line for the controller led from the console to the bed where a blonde guy lay, his leg propped up and casted.  
"Derek?" Yuffie asked as Aliah pushed her into the room. The boy paused the game.  
"Yeah?" He looked at her and Aliah. "Yuffie! Aliah!" Aliah pushed Yuffie next to Derek's bed and sat down in a chair. "What are you two doing here?" He glanced at the wheelchair. "And you in a wheelchair!"  
"We're visiting you. Aliah's here for the same reason as always and mine's a long story."  
"I still need a name for the demon. I was thinking Chaos." Aliah said and stretched.  
Yuffie looked thoughtful, "No, someone else I know has a Chaos beast inside him. How about Massacre or Mass for short?"  
"Naw, that's too bloody." Derek said with a grin. "I was thinking more along the lines of Destruction or Destructor."  
Aliah looked at Yuffie. "Someone else with a demon, who?"  
"His name's Vincent Valentine. I like Destrustion."  
"Destruction it is, then." Aliah said. "D'ya think that Mr. Valentine would talk to me, to help me figure out why I'm the way I am?"  
"Probably."  
"So," Derek said, focusing his grey eyes on Yuffie. "How've you been, Yuffers?"  
Yuffie grinned. "Better than some, worse than most." Derek looked confused. "Well, y'know when I ran off when I was fifteen? A year later, I met up with this spiky headed jerk named Cloud Strife."  
Derek's eyes got wide. "*THE* Cloud Strife? Ex-SOLDIER, leader of AVALANCHE, Cloud Strife?"  
"Yeah, that's him. Anyway, I helped him battle the evil Shinra, watched the flower girl girl, y'know, the last of the Ancients, die, and helped defeat Sephiroth. Cool, huh? Not to mention that I got all of their materia afterwards."  
  
Cloud sat down in a chair. He hated waiting. "What room was she going to again?"  
"739," Tifa yawned. "Wanna go get her?"  
"Yeah, c'mon. Barret can find us later." Barret had gone down to the cafeteria with Marlene, and they hoped he wouldn't return too soon. The two fighters started down the hallway towards the West Wing when Reno rounded the corner.  
"Oh, hey. How's she doin'?"  
Cloud looked over at Tifa, whose eyes shone as if she was hiding a secret. "We're going to go get her from her friend's room right now."  
"No way! I told her to stay in bed!!!" Reno looked a bit upset.  
"We let her go," Tifa replied, scoffing. "Go to bed, Reno. You've got bags under your eyes. Don't wanna screw up your look." Her eyes gleamed and Reno glared at her, then walked away muttering something along the lines of bitch.  
Cloud and Tifa walked to Derek's room. Inside, they heard laughing, so Tifa knocked on the door. Aliah answered it, tears in her eyes from laughing. "Oh! Mr. Strife, Ms. Lockheart! Come in and meet our friend, Derek Sherum.  
Cloud and Tifa walked into the room and saw a blonde boy with piercing grey eyes and Yuffie in a wheelchair laughing.The boy looked up and saw Cloud and stopped laughing. His eyes got wide. "You...You're...You're...Cloud Strife!! And Tifa Lockheart! Oh, wow!"  
Cloud and Tifa both looked confuzzled. Aliah stepped in. "Let me explain. You are Cloud Strife and Tifa Lockheart, two of the main members of AVALANCHE. AVALANCHE was Wutai's greatest hope, Derek and I are from the outskirts of Wutai. THerefore, you are automatically loved by Derek. He practically idolizes you two. An ex-SOLDIER and a bartender from the slums."  
"I met you two once or twice, before Nibelheim burned." Both of the older fighters looked interested suddenly. "I used to live there. I remember the night I saw you two out on the well. I was about seven or eight, I suppose. Hung out with two girls."  
Cloud thought for a minute. "You're the kid who lived on the other side of Tifa's house. You mom was...um...Sherri! And your dad wasn't home very often."  
Derek grinned "Yup!" He suddenly got serious. "My sister was still living with Mom when...Seph...Sephiroth went to Nibelheim. I was pissed off at Mom and went with Dad to Midgar. I...I wasn't there when they both died....Me and Dad were supposed to be going home the next day."  
  
WAHA! Finally finished it! I'm sorry it took so long, but I've been busy with other stuff... FYI: That means I didn't feel like typing up that chapter yet. Kay! So, Review and I'll get the next chapter up ASAP! 


	5. Chapter Five: Yuffers's Plan

After Effects  
By: Yuffie Kisaragi  
  
Yuffie: I've been told by a few friends who've been reading this but not leaving reviews, that I need more intro. ~shakes her head and sighs~ Soooooooooooo...I'm gonna have them help me out every now and then. Derek is based on my friend. So, he's my first friend to help out with the disclaimer.  
Derek: So... What do I say?  
Yuffie: Talk about what I don't own, you moron.  
Derek: Oh! Well, she doesn't own Final Fantasy 7, any songs that get mentioned in the fic, me, or Aliah. That it? OH! And nothing else in this world except the lint in her pockets, and I think that's probably Reno's...  
Yuffie: Err...That'll work, I suppose... Kay! On with the fic!!! ~smacks Derek in the back of the head and continues to grin broadly~  
  
Chapter Five: Yuffers's Plan  
"Memories may come back in dreams." -Vincent Valentine  
  
Three days later, Aliah was released from the hospital. Eleven days after that, Derek got his cast off and was released. Two weeks after Derek, Yuffie was finally able to get out of the hospital that she oh-so-despised.  
Yuffie walked quickly down the street, she had to find someone. She stopped in every store, but so many bars had suddenly popped up that she didn't think she'd ever find who she was looking for. She stepped into Turtle's Paradise and saw Rude.  
"Hey, Rude! Have you seen Vincent?"  
Reno looked around his bald buddy. "Vampire Boy and Elena are at La Chaos Restaurant across town. Why'd ya wanna know, Pest?"  
Yuffie glared at him. "His name's VINCENT not Vampire Boy! And it's my business, not yours!" She stuck her tongue out and left.  
Rude looked at Reno. "There's a La Chaos Restaurant?"  
Reno shrugged. "No, but she doesn't know that."  
  
Yuffie stopped outside of the bar next door. *There's no La Chaos Restaurant. He's just a jerk!* She went into the small, run-down bar and looked around. She quickly spotted Vincent, because he's fairly taller than most everyone. Something had changed about him though.  
Elena looked normal, wearing torn jeans and a pink halter top, but Vincent looked almost...hot! He was wearing cowboy jeans, a white T-shirt, and had a beer in his hand.  
"Vincent!" the young ninja called out and started over towards him. She started to push past a group of guys when some guy pinched her butt. "You JERK!" She screamed, turning around and slapping him across the face in one motion.  
"Why you little whore!" He raised his hand to slap her, but Yuffie cast Fire on him. It only caught his jacket on fire, so he took off his jacket and started towards her. "C'mere you little slut." She dropped to the ground and swept his legs from under him. He got back up right after she did, but before either of them could do anything else, a tall man with long black hair stepped between them, his back to Yuffie.  
"Something wrong, Miss Yuffie?" he asked.  
"Naw, Vincent. I had it completely under control. But if you insist on ruining my fun..." The man looked at Vincent furiously, but his look of fury soon turned to fear as he looked into the Dark One's fiery red eyes. He sprinted out of the bar, screaming like a baby.  
"What do you need?" Vincent asked, walking back to the pool table where he and Elena were hanging out.  
"OH! I know someone else with something like the Chaos best inside of her." Vincent looked down at her thoughtfully and Yuffie continued. "The only difference is that she suddenly gets a headache and BOOM! She's Destruction! Think you could talk to her for me? Maybe help her remember her past?" Vincent nodded. "Really!?! Thanks you!" She threw her arms around him and hugged him, then took off out of the bar. Elena laughed at the expression on The Dark One's face.  
"She only hugged you," she said through fits of hysterical laughter.  
Vincent's face went unreadable again. "It merely caught me off- guard, that's all."  
  
A man in a lab coat, glasses, and black hair tied back rooted through some old books. A man wearing a SOLDIER's uniform walked in.  
"All preparations are ready, sir."  
"Excellent. Do you have the MAKO tank full?"  
"No, sir. We were waiting for your to give the word, sir."  
"Yes, sir. It will take one week to fill the tank completely, sir."  
"Yes, yes. Now...GO START THE DAMN REACTOR!!!!!!!"  
"Y-yes, sir!" The man started to turn, but stopped. "Professor Hojo, sir?"  
"What is it now, Rohan?" Hojo asked, a note of irritation to his voice.  
"What if someone finds out?" Rohan wasn't really worried about anyone except a small rebel group called AVALANCHE. He knew someone in AVALANCHE, and really would rather not fight her, if she was still alive.  
"Then we'll deal with them IF that happens. Now, GO!" Hojo screamed and Rohan turned and left calmly. The professor walked over to a cage that held a woman. "You'll be the first woman to get this treatment, if those morons get their jobs done right."  
She glared at him. "Hojo, you need a real life. 'Till then, Get the f(*@ away from me!"  
"Now, there, my project."  
"My name is Trinity! Use it!" ~(No, not from Matrix. She's actually a character I made up for a game called Dungeons and Dragons before The Matrix even came out.)~  
Hojo chuckled. "Calm down, *Trinity*. You'll be fine. Get rest, for tomorrow brings bad tidings for you."  
Trinity brushed a strand of vibrant red hair out of her blue eyes. "Oh, that's different from any other day, how?" Hojo ignored her. She acted all big and bad on the outside, because Hojo lived off of fear. But, on the inside, she was scared shitless. *Maybe this is a bad dream. Maybe big brother will save me. Maybe...Maybe...What the hell am I thinking!?! Reno left me for dead in Midgar and I'm definitely NOT dreaming. I am so screwed unless I find a way out of here and fast!*  
Hojo had his back to her. All she could do was wait, which definitely wasn't her strong point or favorite thing to do.  
  
Cid sat down to eat his sandwich. Shera still hadn't come back. *Maybe she never will... Maybe it's only a faze... Maybe I'm going insane!!!* He cracked his knuckles, a thing he only did when he was stressed out and lit a cigarette. *Wonder how the gang's doin'. Ain't seen them in a while... About three weeks, I guess. Damn, I'm thinking too damn much. I'll just call them.* He picked up the PHS and dialed the number for Barret's apartment.  
"Hello?"  
"Marlene! Hey, it's Cid! Is your dad their?"  
"Nope, he's at a meetin'. But Aunt Tifa and Uncle Cloud are here. Wanna talk to them?"  
"Yeah, lemme talk at the spiky headed...er... Cloud."  
"Okay!" Silence, then Marlene's high voice, Cloud's tenor, and Tifa's sweet voice.  
"Hello?" The tenor asked.  
"Hey, ya spiky headed f(*@$#!!! How ya doin'?"  
"Hello, Cid. I'm alright. Has Shera returned yet?  
"Naw, I'm better off without her.. She always got in the way. How's Tifa?"  
"I'm good!" Tifa's sweet voice said, obviously over Cloud's shoulder.  
"Are you bored or what?" Cloud's tenor broke the silence.  
"Yeah, a little bit. Hey, isn't there a get-together any time soon?"  
Cid heard a knock on the door come over the PHS and Tifa's voice. "Cloud, answer the door, please. I'll talk to Cid. Hey again, Cid! Nope, no get-togethers until Yuffie's birthday tomorrow night! Make sure you're there! I'll probably call you tomorrow!"  
"Wouldn't miss it for the f(*@$#% world!!! See ya, Teef!"  
"Bye, Cid!" Cid hung up the PHS and looked down at his sandwich. He suddenly wasn't hungry anymore.  
"Ah, what the hell, I'll go work on my new jet engine." He walked out the back door to the taro that covered his new jet engine. He grabbed a wrench, then heard a terrified shriek. He jumped over the small white picket fence and ran around front. A woman ran from what looked like a giant rat walking on two legs. It was almost the same height as Cid.  
"Holy shit!" He lit another cigarette, ran inside, grabbed his spear, then ran back out. The woman fell at just the right moment and he threw his spear at the rat. The thing fell back, then started towards Cid. "Oh, damn, oh, damn, oh, damn, oh, damn, oh, damn, oh, damn," was all that could be heard from the man's mouth as he scrambled to find a materia. "FIRE!" He bellowed. The rat burst into flames. "Heh, like a vampire in sunlight," Cid said with a grin, then went back inside. Monsters were back, that couldn't be good.  
  
"C'mon, Yuffers! Our spot's still here!" Derek called down to the young ninja girl. It was near sunset and the two friends wanted to watch it from their spot atop Da Chao. Yuffie found that Derek's hand holds were too far apart for her to use, so she had to find different ones. "I'm coming! I...AHH!" She screamed as she slipped. Derek reached down and grabbed her hands, then pulled her up.  
Unfortunately, he overestimated her weight and pulled a little too hard. The both went sprawling, and Derek landed on top of a startled and sputtering ninja girl. "Heh, sorry."  
Yuffie rolled him off of her. "Sure ya are," she said sarcastically.  
"But I am.  
"Prove it."  
Derek looked thoughtful. "How?"  
"Don't ask me, you're the one who's supposed to be proving himself."  
"Okay, so I'm not sorry. How shall I make it up to you?"  
"How about... dinner! At Da Chao Restaurant!"  
"Dinner?"  
"Your treat, of course, "she added with a grin.  
"Alright, a date, shall we call this?"  
Yuffie nodded. "But only as friends!"  
"Of course! You think I'd be interested in you? You're my lil' sis."  
Yuffie smiled mischievously as a plan formed in her mind. "Okay, big bro. How'd you like to help your lil' sis out with an evil-ish plan?"  
"What d'you have in mind?"  
  
Aliah felt her head start to throb, but couldn't think of a pattern. The door opened and she assumed it was Mr. Vincent Valentine. He was quiet, but she'd seen him and held up a hand to keep him from getting any closer. She was losing again and soon became Destruction. She stretched her wings and growled down at Vincent. He stared in disbelief. There was someone like him!  
"Aliah? Calm down, control your thoughts!" Destruction looked down at him with fiery red eyes, full of hatred, then they turned a bright emerald green full of sadness.  
"Shhh... Calm down. It's alright. Try to change back, think of a pattern." Soon, Aliah was back to normal.  
"I-I'm sorry," she said apologetically. "I was trying to remember something.. anything, really. But every time I do, I turn into Destruction again." She looked up into his red eyes, he was standing right beside her bed now. "Yuffie said that you have a demon inside you too. We thought that maybe....you could.. like.. help me?"  
Vincent looked at the girl. How could he refuse? He may have seemed to be very, very cold hearted, but even this girl couldn't keep him cold. She was so innocent and harmless looking, so unlike himself, yet had a beast inside of her that she couldn't control. "You need to control your anger to control your beast. Then, to get it to leave, think of a pattern, whether it's numbers, colors, letters, anything. Anything at all to keep your mind off the rage." "So.. it's true? You have a... a demon inside of you too?" Vincent nodded. "How? I mean, I don't remember anything before I was nine, other than my name, age, and birthday. It's like someone purposely erased certain things of my memory."  
"I will give you the short version. An evil scientist did experiments on me." He brought up his metal claw. "I used to have two normal arms, dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a golden tan. But you see me now. Black hair, pale skin, red eyes, a metal claw. I look like a vampire gone worse."  
Aliah looked at the floor, then closed her eyes. Maybe his hints would help her, maybe not. Flashes suddenly came to her. A tube filled with blue-green liquid held a boy, older than herself. She looked around and she was in a tube filled with clear liquid, like water, but tasted like metal. A man in a lab coat walked to her tube and the liquid started to drain out.  
Next, she was leaning against a desk, looking at the boy in the other tube. He looked frightened. She looked around the lab, no one was in there, or looking. She clicked a button and the blue-green liquid drained and the door opened. The boy stumbled out, his long silver-ish hair wet and in his face. He smiled at Aliah.  
"The patterns, Aliah!" a voice interrupted her. She opened her eyes and realized she was Destruction again. She thought about a few numbers repeating them over and over, then was restored to the eighteen-year-old Aliah once again.  
"How... How long was I like that?"  
"Nearly ten minutes," Vincent replied, putting the Death Penalty away.  
Aliah hung her head, "Damn."  
Vincent looked at the girl curiously, "Memories?"  
"Yeah, but I actually remembered something other than blue-green mist." She explained to him what she remembered, or at least what she *thought* she remembered.  
Vincent looked thoughtful, but didn't say anything for a while. Then, "Get some rest. Memories may come back in dreams."  
  
Yuffie looked in the mirror again. She really hated wearing dresses, but in order to make her plan work, she had to. The dress was a deep forest green that sparkled. It went down to her ankles and had a slit from the bottom to mid-thigh. Her hair was brushed out straight, falling half-way down her back, and she wore a pair of heels that matched her dress perfectly.  
"Miss Yuffie, Mr. Sherum is waiting for you downstairs," Shake called in to her.  
"Kay, I'm comin'!" She walked downstairs to meet Derek.  
His eyes lit up in surprise. "You look beautiful, Yuffers."  
She smiled, "You don't look so bad spiffed up yourself."  
They both laughed and headed out the door. Outside was a chocobo drawn carriage the gold trimming gleaming in the sunlight.  
"Wow," Yuffie said in amazement. "Godo really out-did himself this time."  
"Well, tomorrow is you eighteenth birthday." Derek had a look of awe on his face as well.  
Yuffie cast a quick glance around and saw Rude. The two friends got into the carriage. "I saw Rude, and where there's Rude, there's Reno."  
Derek laughed and looked out the window, she was right. Reno and Rude were headed towards Lord Godo's palace. "Hey, they're goin' to your place."  
Yuffie shrugged. "I kinda added a step to ensure they'd be at Da Chao Restaurant. You remember those two girls that were 'following' Reno around yessterday?" Derek nodded. "Well, I paid them to do that. I also told Reno that I knew someone who liked him and that her friend wanted a date also. So, Joleene and Icewen are getting paid 100 gil each. Joleene is supposed to act annoying, and Icewen is supposed to just keep friendly conversation with Rude. They're going to Da Chao Restaurant also."  
"Wow, Yuffers," Derek said with a grin. "You can actually be evil still. If only Sharkie were here to hear this plan." At the mention of Sharkie, Yuffie stared out the window, she hadn't heard from him since she was thirteen. She started playing with one of her mis-matched earrings.  
  
Trinity looked around the lab room that she was in. A lab table, a small metal table, one-way glass so she only saw a reflection, her cage, and a door. She knew why she was there and also knew she only had six days to escape. She reached up and fiddled with her pony tail, pulling out a black hair band. On it were two bobby-pins.  
She smiled inwardly at Hojo's stupidity and began to disengage the lock on her cage. It clicked open after a minutes frustration and she checked it quickly for any alarms. There weren't any.  
The red head opened the cage and let herself out, then started towards the door. After careful inspection, she revealed there weren't any wires or buttons that she could trip. The small window at the top of the door would unlatch easily for a nice surprise attack.  
She took a deep breath and jumped, catching hold of the ledge. She pushed the small window open and climbed up, half of her body hanging over the guard standing at attention. A quick glance revealed no one else down the hallway, that was only to the left. She pushed her way through the window and dropped down on the guard. A quick punch to the face and he was out like a light. She checked the door on the outside, still no wires. She dragged the man into the lab room and switched him clothes. She tucked her fiery jaw-length hair under the cap and could pass easily.  
She looked down at the outfit, then checked it out in the one-way glass. Too much shirt for her small frame, so she used her jeans and T- shirt to take up the room. His shoes were too big, but they'd work for the time being. She stood outside and waited for her relief, a gun holstered at her side.  
Her plan was perfect except for one thing... Hojo was on the other side of the one-way glass.  
He stepped out of the room next to the lab room with five guards. "Trinity, back to your room ,now. You've proven me wrong on your intelligence."  
"But, sir. She's still inside the room, sir." Trinity's voice was disguised, but Hojo only chuckled and took out a small remote. He turned a dial and a loud screeching noise filled the young woman's head. She fell to the ground clutching at her head. Hojo turned off the dial and ordered the guards to take her to her cell. They half dragged half carried Trinity down the hallways. She tried to keep track. Left, right, right, left, third door to the right, or was that the fourth? She finally gave up and lost consciousness.  
  
Derek and Yuffie picked a corner with a window view of a small pond and waited for their victim to arrive. waiter arrived. "I'll take the special and a glass of wine."  
"I'll take the same," Derek said and the waiter left. "So, the reason we came so early in the day is...?"  
"So I can go to Da chao to see the sunset tonight and you... Can go to Aliah!"  
"Me and Aliah again, eh?" Yuffie grinned. "Okay, so what's your excuse for not seeing her tonight?"  
Yuffie shrugged. "Well, Godo wants me to be there, so I'm definitely not gonna be there. Besides, I wanna see just how well our plan works. What time is it right now?"  
"7:00. You're going to be home tonight, right?"  
"Yup. I hafta scout out the plans for my birthday partay!" Derek laughed and heard a familiar voice.  
He looked three tables over and saw the two Turks and their dates. "Ah..." he whispered quietly to Yuffie. "Our victim has arrived." Yuffie glanced Reno's direction. He was obviously not very happy with his date. Joleene was short, looked rounder because she stuffed a few towels in her shirt, and had curly blonde hair. not only that, but she could talk faster than anyone Yuffie'd ever known, including herself.  
Yuffie smiled and Derek saw an evil gleam in her eye, then looked out the window. The sunlight was beginning to fade a little, but it was another hour before sunset. She looked out across the pond and suddenly heard a voice, almost like a memory. "Tell you what, you make it through this and remember this promise...And I'll...er...One date, kiddo." She remembered looking up into the most beautiful blue eyes she'd ever seen, then darkness.  
"Yuffie? Yuffers? Hello? Earth to Yuffie Kisaragi."  
Yuffie looked across the table at Derek, "Huh?"  
"You got all spaced out suddenly." The waiter came with their food, but Yuffie suddenly wasn't very hungry. She played with it and sipped her wine, but Derek wolfed it down quickly. She glanced over at Reno, who looked bored out of his mind. Joleene was chatting merrily, Icewen and Rude were engrossed in their own conversation.  
Reno looked over at Yuffie, who smiled innocently and waved. His look soon became a glare. Yuffie turned back to Derek, "What time is it?"  
Derek glanced at his watch. "8, why?"  
The ninja's eyes got wide, then she glanced towards Reno's table again. His table was blocked from view by the people next to them. Yuffie suddenly got an idea. "Derek," she whispered. "Lean in." Derek did as he was told. The ninja girl took a napkin and wiped off her lip gloss. "When we lean back up, wipe a napkin across your mouth."  
They both leaned back up and Derek wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Ready to leave?" He asked. The soon to be eighteen-year-old nodded and they paid for their dinner. As they walked out, Yuffie slipped her hand in Derek's, Reno's eyes went wide, but only momentarily. Once outside, Derek turned to Yuffie. "What was the leaning forward thing about?"  
Yuffie grinned, "The people next to us blocked us as we leaned forward and Reno was watching. So, to him, it looked like we kissed. My lip gloss gone and you wiping 'something' off your lips." She started towards a bush. "Now, you go see Aliah and I'll go watch the sunset!" She grabbed her clothes that were in a bag behind the bush, then slipped into a bar's bathroom and changed into a pair of khaki colored flare-leg pants with cargo pockets and her normal green halter top. She slipped her gym shoes on and left the bag for some poor shmuck to find.  
She ran out of the bar without being seen by anyone and sprinted to Da Chao. *Please let my plan work, please let my plan work, please let my plan work, please let my plan work!* She prayed silently.  
  
Reno saw Yuffie leave and tried not to pay attention, but couldn't help himself. No, he hadn't been paying attention to Yuffie and the blonde boy when it looked like they kissed, but he saw Yuffie and the boy holding hands. Ten minutes later, Reno and Rude were walking towards their hotel by themselves.  
"I'm going back to the hotel for some asprin and sleep. Joleene talked nough to give a deaf man a headache," Rude said, heading towards the hotel.  
"Alright, I'm gonna go drown my headache in beer. If ya need me, check the bars." Rude nodded and the two parted ways. Reno started towards Turtle's Paradise, but looked up at Da chao for some unknown reason that the author decided. ~(A/N: Hee hee hee.. Sorry, had to add that in there, because he had no reason to look up at Da chao.)~ On Da Chao's hand, he saw a small figure. He smiled to himself and started up the mountain.  
He reached the top just as the orange and pink started to streak the sky. "Pretty, huh?" a voice asked from above him. He spun around and looked up at Yuffie, who was sitting cross-legged on a ledge just above his head.  
"Yeah, it's nice."  
Yuffie turned her gaze from the sky over Wutai to the red head Turk. "I never got to thank you."  
Reno looked surprised, "For what?"  
"Saving my life." Sh jumped down next to him. "I got your blood and without it I wouldn't be here." She smirked. "And if I wasn't here, you never would've had that wonderful date with Joleene."  
"Hmm... If you weren't here, then maybe Wutai woul be alittle more tolerable. I mean, they *did* lose the war with Shinra. Then, they have a really sucky leader, but with you here... I mean, damn! How does anyone stand it?"  
"Y-You'd better take that back, you JERK!" Yuffie said warningly, a serious look to her eyes.  
"Or what?"  
"Or this!" Yuffie shoved Reno hard enough to knock him to the ground, then took off running, climbing higher and higher.  
"Why you!" He screamed and chased after her. He followed quickly, being taller, he got closer and closer quicker. The ninja girl climbed to the top and smiled menacingly at the Turk.  
"Whatcha gonna do about it?" Reno walked over to her, his night stick ready. The rain started to fall. Yuffie started back, but fell. She quickly got up and looked over her shoulder. There was only water, and very few rocks, but it was stil a long fall. She took another step back, the edge crumbled, and she started to fall. She grabbed hold of Reno's shirt and heard a ripping sound.  
"Dammit, not the shirt!" was the last thing heard from Reno's mouth before they both toppled over the edge.  
  
Yuffie: And that's the end of Chapter Five: Yuffers's Plan. Derek: I thought her plan was pretty good, although the lip gloss stuff was a little much. Yuffie: ~rolls her eyes~ Ah, you're just mad that you Aliah aren't hooked up. Anzywho, the next chapter... Derek: Chapter Six: Swimming and Turning Eighteen. Yuffie's last night being seventeen and she's trapped in a cave with Reno! Tifa and Cloud's dilemma on what to get the young ninja for her birthday. How's everyting going to work out? And how many chapters does Yuffers actually have done as of right now? Yuffie: ~grins~ Almost fourteen... I've been working on this for a while, and you're going to be surprised on who Sharkie is. Yes, he plays a fair sized part in this fic. So do Rohan and Trinity. So, hope you liked it, and as always... Derek: Review!!! 


	6. Chapter Six: Swimming and Turning Eighte...

After Effects  
By: Yuffie Kisaragi  
  
Yuffie: And today I'm having Aliah help me out...  
Aliah: Hey. My real name isn't Aliah, just as Derek's isn't Derek. But she did a fairly good job describing me. I've got black hair that's shoulder length and hazel eyes...not emerald.. though that would be cool.  
Yuffie: And you get to do the disclaimer.  
Aliah: Wellllllllll.... Miss Yuffie Kisaragi doesn't own FF7, any songs mentioned, any characters mentioned except Rohan (only cuz that's her b/f's character), the money in her pocket is actually mine and the lint is most-likely either Derek's or Reno's.  
Yuffie: Well, if I don't have sarcastic friends then I'll be damned.  
Aliah: You just very well may be...  
Yuffie: Okay, Doc.  
Aliah: I'm your huckleberry... ~grins~ Too much Tombstone for me, but not enough Curt Russell!  
Yuffie: You're freakin' hilarious... But I hafta admit that Val Kilmer is ~Gets hit in the head with the Lotulis~ Ow!  
Derek: Woops? On with the fic!!! And enough about Curt Russell and Val Kilmer and more about.... Pamela Anderson!  
  
Chapter Six: Swimming And Turning Eighteen  
"So, let's go to a Goth shop?" -Cloud Strife  
  
Tifa watched out the window as the rain poured down from the sky. Lightning lit up the dark room, illuminating the man walking up behind her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and she snuggled back against her boyfriend.  
"I hope it doesn't rain through Yuffie's birthday party tomorrow," she said.  
"Don't worry, if it does, we'll come up with something to do." As always, Cloud assured her.  
"Yeah, I'm sure it'll be fine. But the present she wants I can't get her."  
Cloud thought for a minute. "You mean Reno?"  
Tifa nodded and turned around in Cloud's arms. "Yes, I mean Reno. As much as she may like him, I hope he doesn't show up tomorrow. He's a real jerk."  
Cloud laughed. "That's not something I'd expect to hear from you. I though we decided that the past is the past and there's nothing we can do to change it."  
"I don't mind the past anymore, but he's still a real jerk." Cloud laughed again. "What? He's a pervert and doesn't know how to keep his hands to himself. What exactly would *you* call him, then?"  
"A jackass," Cloud replied, then bent down and kissed her as another streak of lightning lit the sky.  
  
Yuffie broke surface and looked around the tossing waves. It was pouring, the wind was horrible, and she was cold and wet. She looked around and swam over to the nearest rock protruding from the water. She climbed up on top and saw Reno. He climbed up and sat beside her.  
"Reno! You JERK!" She screamed and shoved him back into the water. He climbed back up and dodged her efforts to shove him. Finally, he threw himself on top of her, pinning her arms with his arms and her legs with his legs. She still continues calling him many not-so-nice names.  
"Reno! Get off me! You JERK! RAPE!" Reno stood his ground...or laid his ground. The ninja girl continued her verbal assault and had just reached, "Mother," when Reno pressed his lips onto hers. Her eyes went wide and for a while she struggled, but finally gave up.  
Reno pulled away. "Done yet?" He realized that his pulse had quickened and that his breathing was different, but he'd managed to stay...er... calm.  
Yuffie looked at him. His blue eyes met her dark brown. "Let me up," she said through gritted teeth.  
Reno grinned down at her. "Are you sure you want up?"  
Yuffie glared at him. "Reno, you are such a perv! I don't know why I even like..." Her eyes went wide and she shut up quickly. Reno looked at her with wide eyes, but she shoved him off of her. She sat up and looked down at her mud stained pants, they had tears all over them. "Shit," she muttered softly.  
Reno looked over at her, she was shivering. "Cold?"  
Yuffie looked back at him. He wasn't shivering half as much as she was. "A bit."  
He scooted closer and took off his jacket. "This'll help some." He wrapped the jacket around her shoulders. "This'll help even more." He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and she looked up at him. "The closer we are the warmer we are," he explained.  
The young ninja looked at him for a minute, then smiled, and rested her head on his shoulder. He looked down at her, then rested his head on hers. He closed his eyes, but her excessive shivering kept him awake.  
"Hey, let's find a cave or land, or something, okay?" Yuffie looked up at him and nodded.  
"I know where the nearest cave is. It's over that way," she pointed towards the base of the mountain and yawned. She was really getting tired.  
"I'll go scout it out, you stay here."  
"No way! I'm coming with you."  
Reno looked at the materia hunter and knew there was no way to convince her otherwise. "Fine. Come on." Yuffie started to take off his jacket. "Leave it on. It'll keep you warmer."  
She shrugged and dove into the icy black water, then started swimming towards the base of the mountain. Reno smiled, then followed suit.  
  
Trinity woke up in a cell on a small cot, feeling as if she'd been drugged. She looked around and saw a clock on the wall, "10:00?" She heard the door open and saw a man in a lab coat walk in. "Hojo," she hissed.  
"Hello, Trinity. Are you ready for your first dose? It took less time than we'd ever thought to get the Mako we needed." He smiled an evil smile and two guards helped Trinity up. "I hope you like your new ensemble, the guard look just didn't suit you as well as something you brother might wear."  
Trinity looked down at her clothes. She was wearing black slacks and a white button up long-sleeved blouse. "I look like a f(*@#$% Turk," she muttered. The guards led her down the hallway to an elevator, Hojo followed. They went down to the basement, then to a lab room. The guards strapped her wrists and ankles, she didn't even try to resist.  
Hojo held up a syringe and measured out a blue liquid. He turned her head and gave her the shot in her neck. It burned and brought tears to her eyes, though she refused to let Hojo know.  
Hojo filled another syringe and administered it in the same place on her neck. Trinity felt something new course through her body and could physically feel her muscles getting bigger.  
The evil scientist left the room, muttering to himself. Two guards walked in and unstrapped her. As soon as they finished, Trinity's eyes flashed green and the two guards were hit with beams of ice.  
Trinity laughed. "Oh, this is great! Hojo, you're a f(@*#$% moron!" She walked casually out of the lab room. Five more guards tried to take her on, but they got hit with bolt spells followed by Fire and Ice. Hojo walked around the corner and the young woman glared at him. Her eyes flashed and he was hit with an Ultima spell and rendered unconscious. Trinity giggled like a school girl and walked towards the elevator, figuring the exit was on the main floor.  
  
Reno and Yuffie found the cave where Yuffie used to hide out. The ninja girl had non-perishable foods, cooking items, eating utensils, matches, and dry wood.  
"I'd nearly forgotten about this cave," she said with a yawn. Reno started up a fire and sat down beside her.  
"Did you run away from home on a regular basis or what?"  
"Yeah. I used to run into all kinds of people too. I met Sharkie when I was six and he was almost eight here in this cave. I even ran into a couple of Turks when I was eleven, witnessed the murder of one of them too." She yawned again and looked up at Reno. "Reno?"  
"Hmmm?"  
"Did you promise me something while I was out?"  
Reno smiled. "Yeah, I was wondering if you'd remember."  
"One date?"  
"Yup."  
Yuffie stared into the fire, a sleepy look on her face, then laid her head on Reno's shoulder. "D'ya think it could be more than one?"  
This caught Reno by surprise. "I-I guess, if it works out."  
He leaned back against the wall and Yuffie snuggled in closer. "Goodnight, Reno."  
"Night, babe." Reno stared into the fire for a while, hearing Yuffie's even breathing told him that she was asleep. Had she just told him that she liked him? *Damn, what the hell have I gotten myself into this time?* he wondered, but couldn't help but smile and run his hands through the young materia hunter's hair.  
  
"Wow, that smells good, Papa!"  
"Shhh, Marlene. Don't wake Tifa and Cloud."  
"Sorry."  
Tifa opened one eye and saw the leg of the end table. She was on the floor, an arm was around her waist. She slipped away from Cloud and walked into the kitchen of Barret's home.  
"G'morning. Aunt Tifa!" Marlene said from the table.  
"Tifa smiled back, "Mmmm, Barret, what's cookin'? It smells great."  
"Bacon and eggs, but if ole' Spiky don't get up soon, he ain't gonna get none." Tifa smiled and walked back into the living room where Cloud lay sleeping peacefully. She nudged him gently with her foot, but nothing happened. She nudged him again harder.  
"Get up, sleepy head." Cloud moaned and threw a blanket over his head. Tifa nudged him again. Nothing.  
Finally, Tifa straddled him and started tickling his sides. He laughed and tried frantically to push her off, but he was still sleepy and couldn't see, for the blanket was still over his head. "Okay, okay, I'm awake."  
Tifa stopped tickling him and pulled the blanket off his face, laughing still. "C'mon, Barret made bacon and eggs." She got off of him and they went to the kitchen. An hour later, they were fed, dressed, and bored. Tifa was wearing a pair of blue jeans, boots, and a lime green tank top. Cloud was wearing blue jeans, a black muscle shirt, and boots. Barret had his normal ensemble, and Marlene was wearing a yellow dress and yellow bows in her hair.  
Tifa glanced at the clock. "It's ten o'clock, too early to call Cid?"  
"Probably." Cloud replied.  
"Oh, well." She picked up her PHS and dialed Cid's. A few moments later a sleepy voice was on the other end. "Hey, Cid!" Pause. "Good, you?" Pause. "That's great. We need someone to take us to Wutai, and since you're the only one with the Gospel..." Pause. "You will? Great! Ummm...Around one or two?" Pause. "Okay, thanks! See ya then! Bye!"  
"I'm guessing he'll be here around one or two?" Cloud asked sarcastically.  
Tifa shoved him playfully and flipped on the news. "Warm weather, mostly sunny, great day for a party!" She looked thoughtful. "What are we going to get her?"  
"Materia?" Cloud asked helpfully.. or maybe not so helpfully.  
"No, everyone's gonna be getting her materia. We want to get her something completely different. How about... a new dress! She only wears two sizes less than me!"  
"Uh-oh. I know what that means," Cloud replied fearfully.  
"Shopping trip!" Tifa cried.  
  
Yuffie woke up entangled with Reno. She slowly pulled away, so not to wake him, then stood at the mouth of the cave to watch the sun rise. Reno walked up behind her, something had really changed about him, both of them really. ~(A/N: Not THAT way you pervs!!!)~ "Sleep well," she asked.  
"Who wouldn't next to you?"  
She rolled her eyes and spun around to face him. "Guess what today is, and the first two guesses don't count."  
Reno laughed. "Monday, Tuesday, your birthday."  
Yuffie grinned, "And I though I got confused easily. Yup! My birthday! I'm eighteen today!"  
Reno's eyes got a mischievous look to them. "Oh! So, now you're legal."  
"Reno, get your mind out of the gutter," she said with a laugh. Then, walked back into the cave, hid her items and walked out to join Reno. "Oh! Here ya go." She handed him his jacket and smiled sweetly. "And one more thing," she leaned in like she was going to kiss him. "Don't call me Pest." She turned on her heel and walked away.  
Reno smiled and put on his jacket, then followed her. She was faster than he, especially in the mornings, so she was lost from his sight quickly. He followed her small foot prints in the sand to the other side of the cove and up the old rock stairs. He reached the top, and looked over Wutai.  
"Awesome view, huh?" Yuffie asked from the trail.  
"Yeah," Reno said in awe, then hurried to catch up with Yuffie. "I've gotta go back to my hotel room to change. Meet you at your place in an hour?"  
Yuffie looked at him curiously. There was definitely something different. He wasn't as flirtish, but more, 'You're my girl and I'll protect you no matter what.' *I wonder what made him change all of a sudden.* "All right. I've gotta get a shower anyway." They continued their way down Da Chao hand in hand. Reno walked her home.  
"See you in an hour?"  
"All right, we'll go out for brunch. You'll buy." She grinned and went inside.  
Reno walked to his hotel, whistling. *Man, I feel awesome! I don't know why, I didn't even get laid last night. But, she's just so... so... different from anyone else I've ever met. I feel like I'm in high school and just got my first kiss again. Damn, I wonder what Rude's gonna say about this!* He took the elevator up to the second floor without much thought. When he realized he was standing in front of the door to his hotel room, he snapped out of it. "Oh.. er.. Where's that keycard?" He checked his pockets, and thought for a moment that Yuffie had stolen it, but he found it in his jacket pocket it.  
He opened the door and walked inside, tossing his jacket on a chair and heading towards the bathroom. A voice cut him off. "Hi, big brother."  
The Turk spun around and looked at the red head woman sitting in a chair the he'd thrown his jacket at. She was dressed like a Turk, with the added effect of finger-less gloves and dirt smears, along with no jacket. "Trinity! Wha- You're! How!?!"  
"All in good time, big brother. First, take your shower, I need your help."  
  
Yuffie stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around her slender body. ~(A/N: Derek!!!)~ She dried off quickly and grabbed her clothes. She dressed, then glanced in the mirror. Dark blue jeans, a tight fitting black T-shirt that had a rose on the front and the words 'Kiss from a rose on a grave," and black gym shoes. She looked in the mirror and smiled. If nothing else, the tight fitting showed off her curves a little, and she suddenly cared what she looked like, but not enough to actually wear make-up. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail at the base of her neck, so it hung just past shoulder's level.  
"Ten more minutes," she said, looking up at the clock. The eighteen- year-old sighed heavily. *I feel so... retarded. I'm alluva sudden worried about how I look for him, and he probably doesn't care about me at all. Why do women put themselves through this torture! AH! Someone shoot me.* She flipped on her stereo. No one was in the palace, so it wasn't like someone was going to scream at her to turn it down, so she cranked it up. A rock song came on, she'd fallen in love with rock since she'd gone home from fighting with Cloud and the gang. Drums and a guitar played for a while, then a male's voice.  
*There's no reason.  
There's no compromise.  
Changing seasons.  
Living the highlights.*  
The young ninja sighed and flipped it off. *Five more minutes...* She walked outside and sat on the front steps.  
  
"So, Hojo's back," Reno said it as a statement, not a question. Trinity had just finished telling him everything except her new ability.  
"That's not the worst." She looked at the chair in the corner, her eyes flashed green, and it burst into flames.  
"Holy shit!" Reno exclaimed, and put out the fire as quick as possible. "The Mako injections did that to you!?!"  
"What the hell's going on in there, Reno?" Rude's tired voice asked.  
Trinity glanced up at Reno, who checked his watch. "Oh, shit! Trin, that's Rude, he's my partner. Tell him everything you just told me. I've gotta get or Yuffie's gonna kick my ass!"  
  
Yuffie stretched and looked inside at the clock. 10:10. He was only ten minutes late, but she had a feeling that something was about to happen. *Oh, quit it!* she told herself. *You're just paranoid because he's the first person you've liked since... since Sharkie left.*  
"Sorry I'm late," Reno said, walking up to the steps.  
"It's okay." She stood up and met him at the bottom of the steps, she would've kissed him, but something was troubling him, she could sense it. "What happened?"  
"Nothin', just some problems with family. Where to?"  
Yuffie looked him in the eyes. "I'm going to ask you again," she said forcefully. "What happened?"  
Reno started to shrug it off, but Yuffie's eyes caught his. "I'll tell you over brunch. Where to?"  
"Turtle's Paradise. Elena and Vincent left town, so there shouldn't be anyone there." She started off, but Reno caught her hand and pulled her to him. He grinned a devilish grin and kissed her. The materia hunter wrapped her arms around his neck.  
Ten minutes later, they arrived at Turtle's Paradise. They found a table in the corner and sat down. Reno repeated to her what Trinity had told him.  
"Hmmm, Hojo."  
"Hmmm, Hojo, what?"  
Yuffie looked thoughtful. "I could've sworn that we finished him off. I mean, Vincent hated him with a passion, though I never figured out why, Cloud hated him for what he'd done to the guy. I thought he was creepy, Tifa and Barret agreed with me. But, the last time I saw him, we fought. He was trying to help 'his son.'" Reno looked at her with a befuddled expression. "Sorry, but, he's supposed to be reeeally smart, right?"  
"Right."'  
"So, what would stop him from figuring out how to bring back Sephiroth?"  
Reno pondered that for a moment. "Nothing, I guess. But why would he do that? Sephiroth thought everyone was below him."  
"I dunno, it was just an example. But... if he could bring back the psycho killer, then why couldn't he bring back the Ancient-"  
"Aeris." He glanced at his watch. "It's noon and I really need to get back to Trinity and Rude. C'mon."  
Yuffie looked at him strangely. "You want. me to come?"  
Reno laughed, "Of course. You're my girl now, I can't just leave ya behind."  
*Did he just call me his girl!?!*  
*Did I just call her my girl!?!*  
  
Tifa looked at a rack of dresses. "What about this one?" she asked, holding up a green dress with puffy sleeves.  
"It looks like a prom dress. Why don't we get her something different?"  
"Like what?" Tifa asked, putting the dress back on the rack.  
"Well, she wanted to change her style to darker, right?" Tifa nodded. "So, let's go to a Goth shop?" Tifa turned and looked at him. He was serious!  
"Okay. How about Sassy's? They've got the black stuff. Or Claire's." Cloud shrugged and the couple walked out into the main mall. A couple stores over and they were at Claire's. They walked in and were met by a sales clerk with a lip ring, nose ring, and a green mohawk.  
"How can I help ya?"  
"Umm, my friend's eighteenth birthday is today, and we wanted to know if you have any gift certificates." Tifa replied, trying not to stare.  
"Yeah, how much?"  
Tifa looked at Cloud, who shrugged. "A hundred gil." She got the certificate, and they walked out.  
"Did you see her hair?"  
"Shush, Cloud. That's almost how the guys from the slums looked. How could you tell it was a she?"'  
Cloud laughed. "Because... she was wearing a rather tight tank top."  
Tifa laughed and elbowed him playfully in the gut. "Y'know. Me and you are goin' ta bring her here."  
Cloud looked sick. "Do I hafta? That lady really gave me the willies."  
"Yes, this is *our* gift to Yuffie, therefore we both have to be here with her."  
Within twenty minutes, they were back at Barret's apartment. "Hey, guys," Cid said from the couch.  
"Hey, Cid. You're early, aren't you?" Tifa looked at the clock, noon.  
  
Reno opened the door to his and Rude's apartment and Yuffie walked in, he followed.  
"Trinity? Rude?" He called out, but no one answered. He pulled out his night stick instinctively, and shoved Yuffie behind him, though he knew she was trained to take care of herself. He opened the door to the second room and...  
"Hey, big brother."  
He put away his night stick. "You all need to answer when a guy yells for ya. Damn, almost had me worried."  
Yuffie stepped up beside him, "Almost, eh?" She received a glare from her boyfriend in response.  
"Trinity, this is Miss Yuffie Kisaragi, daughter of Lord Godo." Reno introduced them.  
"Hello, Miss Kisaragi." Trinity said, not bothering to conceal her irritation at her older brother for bringing his bimbo. ~(A/N: Aliah!!!)~  
"Just call me Yuffie."  
"Or Pest," Reno added with a grin. Yuffie elbowed him in the gut and he let out an 'oof.'  
"I told her what you told me," Reno said, sitting down in a chair. Yuffie leaned back against the wall, so she didn't see the glare that Trinity gave Reno. "Before you start getting all pissy, Trin, listen to me. Yuffie is the daughter of Lord Godo, member of AVALANCHE, and knows the mayor of Junon. She helped defeat Hojo once, not to mention brought the downfall of Shinra and killed Sephiroth."  
"So, what he's trying to say," Yuffie interrupted. "Is that I may be of some help since I have connections."  
Reno grinned," Yeah, basically. Thanks, babe."  
Yuffie ignored him. "So, if you want the greatest army in the world, I'm the daughter of Godo. If you want the second greatest army in the world, I know Reeve, the mayor of Junon. If you want stealth, there's me, Tifa, and the Turks, not to mention that Cid Highwind can create the best jets on the planet and with limited resources."  
Trinity had started laughing after Yuffie started her little speech. "And you are how old?"  
Yuffie looked confused, "Eighteen as of today, why?"  
"Eighteen? So, you were what? Sixteen when AVALANCHE was starting to get real active? I find it very hard to believe that you are a member of AVALANCHE!"  
"You'll find this hard to believe!" Yuffie growled, lunging at the laughing woman. Reno jumped up a little too late, because Yuffie had already gotten a hit on Trinity. The woman had a bloody nose. Reno pulled his girlfriend away from his sister, though she still struggled.  
Trinity brought a hand up to her nose. "That little bitch drew blood on me!" She hit the teen with an Ultima spell, that flung Reno and Yuffie flying across the room like rag dolls.  
Reno helped his girlfriend up, "Trinity, you deserved it." Yuffie shoved Reno away from her and got up on her own. After a glare at Trinity, then at Reno, she walked out of the hotel suite.  
"And you're supposed to be my brother!" she heard Trinity scream. "Some big brother you are!"  
The teen walked down the hallway. "Yuff! Wait!" She turned and saw Reno running towards her. "I'm sorry, Yuffie. I really thought she'd act a little better." Yuffie watched him as he talked, he was visibly angry, something that he could usually hide. "You're not mad at me, are you?"  
Yuffie took a deep breath. "I'm not mad at you. I'm just... I don't know. I'm the youngest in AVALANCHE. I can see why she wouldn't believe me, but I'm practically famous now! I tell her I can help her and she sits there and tells I'm a liar! I'm four years younger than Tifa. 30 years younger than Cid, 32 years younger than Red XIII!!!" Her cheeks were flushed and she was ranting. Reno had to stop her somehow. So, he did the same thing that he'd done the night before, he kissed her. Yuffie's eyes went wide, but then she wrapped her arms around his neck, while he wrapped his around her waist, pulling her closer.  
They stayed like that for awhile until, "Ahem!" Yuffie pulled away and looked behind her. There stood Cid Highwind. The ninja girl's cheeks were scarlet and she unwrapped her arms from around Reno's neck and Reno unwrapped his from around her waist. The ninja turned and faced Cid. "Hey, Cid," she offered weakly.  
"What the f(@* you doin' with this f(@*#$% jackass!?!"  
Yuffie felt the rage rising within her. "It's none of your damn business!"  
Reno wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back against him to keep her from lunging at the old timer. "Yuffie, calm down," he sounded calm, but he was actually almost as furious as she was. "You caught us, Cid."  
  
Yuffie: Phew, that took longer than I thought it would to get up.  
Aliah: Really, you started this the day you put up the last chapter.  
Yuffie: Oh, well. Anywho, review! And on my newest fic! I was really bored, so I decided to post another fic. It's uncreative, cuz it's a 'sucked into the FF7 world' fic. Welp, 'till next time!  
Aliah & Derek: Audi! 


End file.
